Open Petraeus-Crocker thread
Comment away on David Petraues and Ryan Crocker’s presentations to Congress on the effects of the surge strategy. My three questions: 1) Will anyone’s mind be changed by what Petraeus and Crocker actually say? In other words, are there any undecideds actually left in Congress (and in the country, for that matter)? 2) How much ...
Comment away on David Petraues and Ryan Crocker's presentations to Congress on the effects of the surge strategy. My three questions: 1) Will anyone's mind be changed by what Petraeus and Crocker actually say? In other words, are there any undecideds actually left in Congress (and in the country, for that matter)? 2) How much should their testimony be weighed against the mutiple independent assessments of Iraq -- many of which are more pessimistic? 3) At what point does the failure of any political solution nullify whatever military gains have been achieved in the short run?UPDATE: Kevin Drum is watching the hearings and points out a problem for Republicans: Is it just me, or does anyone else think that Republicans are making a big mistake by spending all their TV time this morning complaining about accusations that Gen. Petraeus is cooking the books in his assessment of progress in Iraq? Repeating the accusation, even if it's only to denounce it, is still repeating the accusation. The Washington Post's Shankar Vedantam would agree with Drum. ANOTHER UPDATE: This BBC poll is making the rounds in the blogosphere -- and would seem to represent a direct challenge to the Petraeus/Crocker depiction of Iraq.
Comment away on David Petraues and Ryan Crocker’s presentations to Congress on the effects of the surge strategy. My three questions:
1) Will anyone’s mind be changed by what Petraeus and Crocker actually say? In other words, are there any undecideds actually left in Congress (and in the country, for that matter)? 2) How much should their testimony be weighed against the mutiple independent assessments of Iraq — many of which are more pessimistic? 3) At what point does the failure of any political solution nullify whatever military gains have been achieved in the short run?
UPDATE: Kevin Drum is watching the hearings and points out a problem for Republicans:
Is it just me, or does anyone else think that Republicans are making a big mistake by spending all their TV time this morning complaining about accusations that Gen. Petraeus is cooking the books in his assessment of progress in Iraq? Repeating the accusation, even if it’s only to denounce it, is still repeating the accusation.
The Washington Post‘s Shankar Vedantam would agree with Drum. ANOTHER UPDATE: This BBC poll is making the rounds in the blogosphere — and would seem to represent a direct challenge to the Petraeus/Crocker depiction of Iraq.
Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner
More from Foreign Policy

Can Russia Get Used to Being China’s Little Brother?
The power dynamic between Beijing and Moscow has switched dramatically.

Xi and Putin Have the Most Consequential Undeclared Alliance in the World
It’s become more important than Washington’s official alliances today.

It’s a New Great Game. Again.
Across Central Asia, Russia’s brand is tainted by Ukraine, China’s got challenges, and Washington senses another opening.

Iraqi Kurdistan’s House of Cards Is Collapsing
The region once seemed a bright spot in the disorder unleashed by U.S. regime change. Today, things look bleak.