Petraeus: I Need Another Six Months To Determine Whether "We've Reached A Turning Point"

Thinkprogress.org:

In the past few months, conservatives such as Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) have been quick to declare victory in Iraq. In November, McCain said that "we've succeeded militarily." A day later, Lieberman declared that "we are winning" because "we have made progress" in "one of the most remarkable turnarounds in modern military history."

Gen. David Petraeus, however, appeared on NBC this morning and rebutted the declarations of mission accomplished and said that he'll need at least another Friedman Unit before he can make a judgment:

We think we won't know that we've reached a turning point until we're six months past it. We have repeatedly said that there is no lights at the end of the tunnel that we're seeing. We're certainly not dancing in the end zone or anything like that.

Read the whole story: Thinkprogress.org

Comments

[sa]

i just need 200 trillion more dollars,
and 10 million american lives,
and we can wipe out this whole
middle east thingy.

really, it's just more dead poor people.

[shanester]

How can six more months make any difference when last year we would know within the first six months yet just last week the Iraqi minister says he needs the troops there till 2018??

wtf???

does anybody believe this endless BS anymore???

[MajorKong]

Yep, another trillion dollars or so ought to just about do it.

[NYC07]

We can thank both the Media and the useless Congress for this never ending war. When Petraeus went before Congress, the Media all said "Oh every word he says is true" "Well he silenced any and all critics of the War" "He must be telling the truth, why would he lie?" Congress just went along with what ever Petraeus said, nodding their heads in agreement believing he was either Alexander the Great or Caesar, instead of pounding on the reality that 5 years into this war the Iraqis STILL refuse to make any peace with each other, and their Military STILL isn't ready . Just think if it took the US Military 5 yrs after Pearl Harbor to be ready to fight. The warring factions in Iraq know that they don't need to make peace with each other, they don't need to compromise all they have to do is wait us out. Eventually the US will be bankrupt and the Chinese won't lend us anymore money and we will leave. After that it will be who ever is the strongest group will take over will win control of what ever is left.

[ShockandAutism]

Petraeus: "We need up unitl George Bush is out of office so we can hand this mess off to a Democrat"

[gcallaghan]

From the article:
"We think we won't know that we've reached a turning point until we're six months past it. We have repeatedly said that there is no lights at the end of the tunnel that we're seeing."

you're never going to see lights at the end of the tunnel if the tunnel you're digging leads straight down, moron.

[dutchess2]

Another...6 months!

At 4 billion a day?

Or is it only 4 million a day?

How about we get him to sign a pledge that he won't ever ever run for public office...

Then we'll talk about how much time he needs..

Sheesh...the entire WWII was done sooner!

No one can explain how this one, with far superior training and weaponry takes longer?

[MikeMidCity]

Why oh why did the congress ever give this stupid SOB the power to declare a war?

[wsblake]

Those quotes from McCain and Leiberman say it all. And these two lunatics may very well be in the White House in less than a year, because the Democrats will put up no one who can beat them. Damn are we in deep shit.

[gcallaghan]

6 months to know if it worked? It's been a year since it began and they said then it'd take 6 months to show results. These guys are like poorly performing home improvement contractors. What he means is he thinks he can bleed the American taxpayers an additional $72 billion before telling us he needs $72 billion after that.

[DIERIGJ]

Just drop the big bomb on this country and forget them once and for all.....

THEY DON'T WANT TO HELP THEMSELVES. All the money that's gone into al maliki's pocket could pay for new schools in this country. Start taking care of your own!!!!

BUSH....BETRAYUS............YOU'RE FIRED!!!!!!

[CatfishAndGrits]

The military should add the "Friedman Unit" as a new metric. Honestly, how can anyone think the surge is working. It is not. Click below

http://blogging.accuwebhosting.com/catfish-and-grits/archive/2008/01/22/1we230nfs4bhd.htm?slsid=

[Macready]

"We think we won't know that we've reached a turning point until we're six months past it. We have repeatedly said that there is no lights at the end of the tunnel that we're seeing. We're certainly not dancing in the end zone or anything like that."

there is no turning point in Iraq betrayus . . . and there never will be for this illegal invasion and you know it . . . it is time to get the troops out . . . the Iraqi's will need aid for decades to rebuild their country because of the illegal invasion and you know it so stop with the lies

[traveler501]

oh yeah, now that really gives me confidence LOL As if there even IS such a thing as succeeding in Iraq at this point? Anyone ask him what this magical experience would be like, were it to mysteriously happen? Are we back to greeting us with flowers?

[Beolarry]

And here John McCain was counting on Gen. Petraeus to drive his Straight Talk Express warp speed ahead into Teyran. This six month delay certainly changes things.