The Petraeus Report

It's been a while since I posted, but I wanted to weigh in on the Petraeus Report and how Democrats have been reacting to it. As you might have guessed by now, the Dems don't come off looking that great in this situation. Here's why.

- Before General Petraeus said one word before Congress, Democrats were already characterizing it as a pack of lies. And, more importantly, before it was even released to Congress. How did the Democrats know what Petraeus would report before he issued the report? I know the faux left thinks they're ultra-intelligent, but even that's jumping the gun a bit.

- The day before the Petraeus Report, MoveOn.org along with the New York Times put out an ad calling General Petraeus "General Betray-Us." So far, no Democrat has stepped forward to condemn the ad and, if anything, have picked it up and run with it. Everyone from Hillary Clinton to John Murtha to John Kerry have suggested Petraeus wasn't telling the truth at the behest of President Bush. Of course, this goes hand-in-hand with what the faux left was saying before the report came out. But one has to wonder what they would have said if Petraeus's report coincided more closely with what they've been saying all along. Would they be saying Petraeus was lying, or would they praise his "bravery, honesty, and service to the country"? Given how political the faux left has made the war in Iraq, I'm confident they'd be crawling over each other to get to a microphone to pat him on the back if he agreed with them. As it stands, they're crawling over each other to get to a microphone to stab him in the back.

- The responses to Petraeus's report coming from Democrats with a military background are interesting because it's usually one of the first things they and the media reference when they issue statements. Yet, when actual soldiers who have or have had boots on the ground speak up in support of the surge and the war in Iraq, Democrats and the media ignore them. In fact, some leftist luminaries have gone so far as to suggest soldiers are ignorant fools. Remember John Kerry's hoof-in-mouth moment from 2006? That slip-up was the Kerry speaking the truth about how the faux left feels about our soldiers. Need further proof? Ask yourself why Al Gore was so intent on disqualifying as many military ballots in Florida as he could in 2000. It's simple: the faux left knows the military isn't on their side. And with good reason.

- I'm surprised no one else has picked up on this yet. Democrats say Petraeus is a liar and a Bush puppet. Yet, what do they do when they talk about the problems in Iraq? They quote Petraeus. So apparently they're picking and choosing when Petraeus is telling the truth. Isn't that like...oh I don't know...cherrypicking information that supports a predetermined outcome? I mean, if it's bad when Bush allegedly does it, it should be bad when Democrats do it.

In the end, though, Petraeus won this contest by not only beating the Democrats to the punch, but by doing it with a grace that they can't seem to muster. If you get a chance, take a look at how Petraeus delivers his comments and responds to questions (when he's allowed to respond, that is). Now, compare it to the grandstanding and testiness of the Democrats.

Who would you rather have leading the troops: a cool, collected General, or a bunch of howling jackals playing armchair generals?