Bush's Second Surge?

The link in this entry's title takes you to a story about a so-called "second surge" being conducted in Iraq by the Bush Administration. Hearst newspapers are reporting that due to increased length of deployed troops and faster rotation of troops in and out of Iraq, there will actually be close to 200,000 troops in Iraq at the end of the year. This is in contrast to the approximately 140,000 or so troops that are supposedly going to be in Iraq after the ongoing "surge" is completed.

If true, this could really put GOP lawmakers in an increasingly awkward position. They are resisting putting deadlines down for the withdrawal of American troops, calling such deadlines "surrender dates." Now they find themselves potentially having to defend an underhanded escalation of troops in Iraq when a steadily increasing majority of Americans want a timetable for the end of our involvement.

The Democratic leadership in Congress, who reportedly agreed on Tuesday, May 22, 2007, to an Iraq war funding resolution without timetables, could also be in a bind. When Democratic activists learn of this report from Hearst news, they are going to be even more angry about the Iraq War funding bill.

This report of a surge, combined with the reported compromise between Bush and the Dem leadership, will also complicate the life of Hillary Clinton. She would dearly love to talk about things other than Iraq and why she supported the war resolution back in 2002. News reports like the ones from Hearst will make that more and more difficult.

Of course, the Republicans, the Dem leadership, and Senator Clinton should have learned long before now that Bush will do whatever he wants and you can never, ever trust him or believe what he says.