“We’ve Won The War”

Of all the idiotic things that Bill Kristol has said, this has to be one of the dumbest. We currently have around 150,000 troops occupying Iraq. By coopting the Sunni tribes, engaging in serious counter-insurgency, dividing Baghdad into walled sectarian enclaves, and exploiting exhaustion, we are no longer hosting a murderous civil war. But we have not left; there is no stable state to fill the security vacuum that will be created by our departure, and violence remains a daily occurrence. Read Totten yesterday to get a glimpse of the eerie lull that we are now in.

There is no stable national political settlement, no real integration of the Sunni forces into the Shiite national government, and a great deal of unease and fear. 21 people were killed by bombs yesterday, including children, and Mosul and Kirkuk remain explosive. And that’s while the occupation is in force. To argue that this has been "won" is therefore absurd. Rove, of course, perpetuates the same meme:

Mr. Rove was incredulous at Mr. Jenkins’ assertion that the Vietnam War was better managed than the Iraq war. "We ended Vietnam in defeat, for which the families of 55,000 fallen heroes had reason to ask themselves if their sacrifices had been made in vain," Mr. Rove said.

How does Rove know that when US troops withdraw, the same nightmare that engulfed Vietnam will not engulf Iraq? He doesn’t. What he and Kristol are doing is declaring victory for Bush prematurely so they can attack Obama for throwing that victory away. It’s always the same with them. It’s about spin, not reality. When the US has withdrawn and Iraq has not disintegrated or exploded, let them declare victory. I will gladly echo them. Until then: stop the partisan spinning.