Taylor Marsh – TaylorMarsh.com – News, Opinion and Weblog on Progressive Politics

IRAQ: Again with the “Making Progress”

Why is this woman smiling?

Condi is at it again.

Ms. Rice drops into Baghdad in order to report out that the
Iraqis are “making progress”.

The problem is that Ms. Rice doesn't
know what she's talking about, which has been proven time and again, most recently
through Bob Woodward's STATE OF DENIAL. Again today we get an example of why
Woodward's book is so aptly named. Pretty soon we're going to have to find a
new word other than DENIAL.

Senator Warner, former secretary of the Navy, has a different view.

The chairman, Senator John W. Warner of Virginia, expressed particular concern that Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki had not moved decisively against sectarian militias. “In two or three months if this thing hasn’t come to fruition and this level of violence is not under control, I think it’s a responsibility of our government to determine: Is there a change of course we should take?” Senator Warner said. He did not specify what shift might be necessary in Iraq, but he said that the American military had done what it could to stabilize Iraq and that no policy options should be taken “off the table.” He was speaking at a Capitol Hill news conference after returning from a Middle East trip that included a one-day visit to Baghdad. His comments underscored the growing misgivings of even senior Republicans about the situation in Iraq. They also appeared to be a warning to the Bush administration that it might have to consider different approaches after the November midterm elections. Senator Says U.S. Should Rethink Iraq Strategy

Now cut to Condi:

“It is a quite critical time for the Iraqi government,” Ms. Rice said of the reasons for her brief unannounced visit to the Iraqi capital. “What the American people see on their television screens is the struggle,” she said. “It is harder to show the political process that is going on at local levels, at provincial levels and indeed at the national level.” Iraqis, she said, are “making progress.” Rice, in Baghdad, Insists That Iraqis Are ‘Making Progress’

If Americans doubt the ability for a woman to be president in these dangerous
times, Condoleezza Rice is exhibit A. You cannot take this woman seriously.
She's all show, just like her boss. Don't confuse Republicans like Rice with people like Tammy Duckworth. That would be a big mistake.