Murtha and Iraq--out of touch as ever...

Despite the daily advancements made by our Iraqi policy, our soldiers and their Iraqi counterparts, Jack Murtha thinks he has all the answers, and appears to think of himself as a top authority on Iraq and what should be U.S. policy. But Murtha, in his quest to proclaim defeat, has no clue as to the challenges that face the Iraqis, nor any sense of perspective of what it will take for them to cement democracy in their troubled land.

From Jackson Diehl in the Washington Post:

Mahdi, Sistani and other Shiite leaders in the government don't share Washington's perception of a downward spiral. They also don't buy the American sense of urgency -- the oft-expressed idea that the new government has only a few months to succeed. Consequently, the many ideas for silver bullets tossed around in the U.S. debate mostly don't interest them.

[snip]

For the most part, our queries were politely and somewhat laconically dismissed. Iraq is not in a civil war, Mahdi said, and doesn't need more U.S. troops. It has a constitution and elected government, and thus there is no need for an international conference. As for constitutional reform, the Shiite and Kurd parties that wrote the charter last year are waiting for proposals from Sunni dissidents. Mahdi added: "So far we have heard nothing."

So what is the solution? "Time -- that is it," Mahdi replied. "A nation like Iraq needs time. The elections for a permanent government happened eight months ago. We have been in office a few weeks. The people who we have in office have never governed. These people come from oppression and a bad political system. We can't import ministers to Iraq. There will be many mistakes. The Americans made many mistakes, and Iraqis had to support that."

But Jack Murtha will have none of that:

"If we are to fight this war with the same sense of dedication and vigor as we did prior wars, we cannot do it without a surge in force.

Two years ago, I was one of only two in the House of Representatives who voted for a draft, because I believe if we are a country truly at war, the burden should be shared proportionately and fairly. So Mr. President, you have two options, either change the course in Iraq and reduce the burden on our overstretched active force or reinstitute the draft. We cannot sustain the current course."

Murtha--out of touch? out of his mind?

Perhaps both.

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Tehcnorati: Murtha Irey Iraq Bush