For months now, supporters of the war in Iraq have trumpeted America’s apparent success in Iraq’s Anbar Province as a model for counterinsurgency operations.  With major fighting in Fallujah, Ramadi, and Qaim in the past, what had once been the most violent region of Iraq had--by the fall of 2007--become one of the most peaceful areas of the country.

It stayed that way until recently.  When a yet-to-be-named U.S. soldier was killed while on patrol in Anbar on Tuesday, he became the ninth American to die there in the past three and a half weeks.  This is neither random nor insignificant.

When a World War II vet sends a message by shooting himself in the head outside a VA clinic, it’s a sign that things are going fairly poorly.

In the rush to cover current events, we often forget to go back and really mock the so-called "experts" who’ve said some of the dumber things about the war in Iraq recently.  So I want to take a few minutes this morning to do just that.  Doing so will better enable us to heap scorn on them when they attempt to say similar stupid shit in the future.

But first off, let’s consider the current situation in Iraq:

51 Americans died in Iraq this past month, making April 2008 the deadliest for U.S. troops since last summer--the bloodiest of the war.  This represents a more than 30 percent increase in combat fatalities over March (during the Basra fighting).  However, more telling than that, is the fact that American deaths in Iraq are up 122 percent since December.  

Dick Cheney said this on August 2, 2000:

For eight years, Clinton and Gore have extended our military commitments while depleting our military power.  Rarely has so much been demanded of our armed forces, and so little given to them in return. George W. Bush and I are going to change that, too.  I have seen our military at its finest, with the best equipment, the best training, and the best leadership.  I'm proud of them. I have had the responsibility for their well-being.  And I can promise them now, help is on the way.  Soon, our men and women in uniform will once again have a commander in chief they can respect, one who understands their mission and restores their morale.

In the list of the "100 Most Ironic Comments Ever Made in Human History," Cheney’s remarks in 2000 are undoubtedly in the top half.  

Al Qaeda
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq
Iran
Al Qaeda in Iraq

Congressman Patrick McHenry is having a bad week.  First, the bellicose, 32-year-old chickenhawk from North Carolina got in trouble for calling a Green Zone sentry a "two-bit security guard" while in Iraq--a statement for which he was later forced to apologize.  As if that weren’t bad enough, he’s now in serious trouble for trying to act like a tough guy at the expense of U.S. troops in Baghdad.  

On Friday April 4, the North Carolina Congressman assisted insurgents in Iraq and endangered American lives by bragging cluelessly about being rocketed in the Green Zone in a homemade video he posted on his own Congressional website.  In the video, he related to anyone with an internet connection just how effective those rocket attacks had been.  This is a huge no-no for anyone who’s ever spent more than five minutes in a combat zone--and it’s worthy of both censure and another apology.

This is not a diary for arguing over the whether the invasion of Iraq was justified or not.  Rather, this is a piece about what happens when chickenhawks get hold of the military and live out their repressed fantasies by giving it an unrealistic mission, holding it to an impractical timeline, and generally using its soldiers as human chess pieces.

Call it overconfidence; call it arrogance, but none of the shortages I was experiencing five years ago this week really bothered me at the time.  They were planted firmly in the back of my mind, but I think I was just too busy to worry about them.  It’s only when I look back that I see how poorly planned and resourced the invasion of Iraq was from the start.

In the swirling violence that has now spread across the southern half of Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army gang of thugs is now using American-issued Iraqi Army humvees.

We’ve learned a few things about "progress" this week:

Part I: The Chickenhawk

Meet Jason Mattera.  Jason is the kind of useless American that makes any good citizen’s skin crawl.  Here he is on Hardball with Chris Matthews in 2006:
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The transcript is here.  That segment on Hardball earned Jason a spot as our Chickenhawk of the Day on VetVoice a while back.  Since then, he’s made quite a name for himself in conservative circles.

This has been a long time coming:

Vets.org PAC, the largest political group of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans that has endorsed nine such veterans for Congress, is announcing seven new endorsements today.

If the Bush administration and the obstructionist Republicans in the Senate are paying attention, they’ll get the lesson here: When you start stupid wars and continually misuse and abuse the military, you’ll get veterans coming out of the woodwork to oppose you.  

This brings our total card up to 16 military veteran candidates for 2008.  And, as you’ll see below, some of our new candidates are well known Kossacks.

This all comes back to a Presidential administration that thinks it knows more about war fighting than the men and women in uniform.  In May 2007, shortly after his confirmation as CENTCOM Commander, Inter Press Service wrote of Admiral William Fallon:

Fallon's refusal to support a further naval buildup in the Gulf reflected his firm opposition to an attack on Iran and an apparent readiness to put his career on the line to prevent it. A source who met privately with Fallon around the time of his confirmation hearing and who insists on anonymity quoted Fallon as saying that an attack on Iran "will not happen on my watch".

Asked how he could be sure, the source says, Fallon replied, "You know what choices I have. I'm a professional." Fallon said that he was not alone, according to the source, adding, "There are several of us trying to put the crazies back in the box."

In 2004, the world watched as Senator John Kerry was "swiftboated."  In 2008, attacks on veterans—specifically on those running for office—will be dealt with rapidly and harshly.

So when it happened to Senate candidate and Afghanistan veteran Rick Noriega this morning, we issued a press release from VoteVets to all the major media outlets in Texas.  In the statement, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans from across the state made their feelings known to both John Cornyn and the Texas State Republican Party.

On Thursday, American newsman Matt Drudge provided material support to al Qaeda and Taliban forces--the perpetrators of 9/11--by divulging highly secret information to them about NATO forces currently fighting in Afghanistan.  Specifically, Drudge revealed that Britain’s Prince Harry was serving in combat there.

With Prince Harry, his fellow troops, and the mission itself endangered on account of Drudge’s revelation, the British government immediately whisked Harry out of the country.  The effect on his unit--its cohesion, morale, and ability to sustain its mission against al Qaeda--after such an abrupt change in leadership is uncertain.  

It is not yet known how long Drudge has been providing support for al Qaeda, or whether he intends to do it again.  Similarly, it remains to be seen what, if any, other forms of aid and comfort Drudge has provided to the enemy.  However, we do know that Drudge is unrepentant.

I’ve been traveling all day for a quick trip (less than 24 hours) to New York, so I haven’t had time to really say anything about the television ad we released at VoteVets this morning.  Anyway, if you haven’t seen it yet, it features U.S. Army Captain and VoteVets Senior Advisor Rose Forrest challenging John McCain on Iraq.  Here it is:

Oh, the irony.  

In his letter to Barack Obama yesterday, Senator John Warner acted surprised and outraged that such equipment shortages could occur in Afghanistan--especially under his watch as "a former Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee."  

In fact, Senator Warner was so incensed by the situation that he was Determined to Get to the Bottom of It.  Therefore, he self-righteously demanded of Senator Obama that the Presidential candidate provide him with

the essential facts of when – the dates – the unit was deployed, to which brigade combat team, or other unit it was assigned, the name and current location of the captain, or other military personnel who shared the facts with you, so that committee staff can debrief them.

The tone is of one who is incredulous--who sincerely expects that Senator Obama is making this whole thing up.  It appears that Warner doesn’t actually expect to be challenged on this.

[from the diaries - BarbinMD]

This is hilarious.

The Republican Party of Texas, acting on behalf of chickenhawk Senator John Cornyn, has formally requested to review the military records of Senate candidate Rick Noriega.  Lt. Col. Noriega announced this publicly this afternoon on his website and on VetVoice.

Hmmm.  Now why would the Texas GOP need access to this decorated Afghanistan veteran’s military record?  I wonder where this could be going.  

Let’s see what the Noriega campaign thinks:

We know where this is going.

The Republican Party of Texas, and by extension, Senator John Cornyn, has requested that I release my military records to them. I am astounded and outraged at the implications of this request.  Over the past few years, some Republicans have conducted the most dishonest and disreputable attacks on veterans that our nation has ever seen.
 
In 2002, we saw the National Republican Senatorial Committee smear Senator Max Cleland of Georgia, a triple-amputee Vietnam veteran, as being in league with Osama bin Laden. This was shameful and goes against every Texas value.

Texans will not stand for this.

Yep.  That’s where I thought it was going.  Get out the purple band-aids.  These guys aren’t even going to be subtle about swiftboating Lt. Col. Noriega.  They’re just going to come right out with it.  Here is an excerpt from the letter the campaign received from the Republican Party of Texas:

"You have indicated that you intend to make military experience, integrity and transparency the cornerstones of your campaign. We are grateful for your service to this country and we agree that those that seek higher office should support transparency and openness regarding all of their public service records."

These guys must be joking about the "transparency and openness" thing.  At least I assume they are.  I mean, we are talking about Senator John Cornyn here.

The bottom line is that Rick Noriega will release his military records to the public.  In fact, he went further this afternoon in his written reply to the Republican Party of Texas:

I welcome honest scrutiny of every aspect of my service.  It's been my privilege to serve our nation for nearly 27 years in places like Afghanistan, and on the Texas border, and I fully intend to release my military records, subject to security review and updating of my most recent training and commendations, to the public. As I am currently serving as the Commander of the 1-141 Infantry, 36th Infantry Division and potentially subject to redeployment, I am not going to allow my family, my soldiers or my country to be put at risk as a result of your political games.  You are welcome to view my military records at the same time as the citizens of Texas.

Noriega goes on to state:

These attacks on individuals who have put their bodies and lives on the line for their country are an outrage to all veterans, and they have to stop.

My record of service includes not only my years in the National Guard and Reserves, but also legislating to aid members of the Texas National Guard and all Texas veterans.  Among my legislative accomplishments are obtaining health services for Veterans, including a screening for metal traces after exposure to munitions, educational benefits for those who have served Texas and our nation, and spearheading legislation to create a database of medical, social and economic resources for military personnel seeking benefits they have been promised by the government.  I also am proud to have authored and supported free hunting/fishing licenses for all Texas guardsman and active duty personnel.

I look forward to discussing with Senator Cornyn why he twice rejected responsible troop deployment limits, twice voted against increased funding for veteran health care, voted against funding for armored vehicles, against increased funding for TRICARE but for allowing TRICARE fees to triple, and against protecting soldiers' civilian salaries while they're serving in Iraq.  This is the conversation that we should be having.

So let’s be clear about one thing: Rick Noriega will not be swiftboated on his military record by anyone—let alone some Republican hacks who’ve never donned a uniform and who’ve certainly never set foot in Afghanistan.

You can help Rick prevent any swiftboat attacks by signing his petition here, and you can also donate to his campaign by clicking here.

[Promoted from the Diaries by MB]

Don’t let anyone fool you into believing that John McCain is some sort of pied piper who’s gained the unquestioning allegiance of the military and veterans’ communities.  I know that’s how they like to portray it on the cable news shows, but it’s just not true.  I also realize lots of Republicans have a vested interest in seeing John McCain cast as the patron saint of Militaria, but the numbers just aren’t there.  

Sorry.