Cynicism at its finest

Apparently the consensus among the "serious" people of the D.C. Cocktail circuit Bush is using Petraeus to string out a failed policy until it is the next President's loss to take.

And apparently that's okay with Tim Russert, David Broder, Fred Hiatt, and the other oh-so-serious clowns of the beltway.

People have to die for the purpose of keeping George Bush from accepting his loss.

If a more cowardly individual, a more craven individual, a less responsible and mature individual will ever occupy the Oval Office we don't want to see it. Even Rudy could only hope to tie it.

Andrew Bacevich:

Petraeus seems to hope that with the passage of time, Iraqi political leaders will get their act together. But hope makes a poor basis for strategy.

Petraeus's recommendation to kick the can down the road will suit the Bush administration, which is determined neither to confront nor to acknowledge responsibility for the debacle it has created. But his recommendation will not suit the soldiers he commands, the army to which he has devoted his life, or the nation he serves.

The moment calls for an assessment and recommendations that cut to the heart of the matter. Instead, Petraeus has temporized. History will not judge his hesitation kindly.

Charles Ferguson ("No End in Sight")

[T]he plans and predictions offered by both men point depressingly to an administration that remains blind to all realities except its own political survival. How convenient that they predict it will be possible to begin withdrawing troops just a few months before the next presidential election. How sad that such good men as General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker are being misused in this way. And how clear it seems that any realistic, honest reassessment of U.S. policy in Iraq must come from Congress and from the next president, rather than from this administration.