Lieberman Falsely Suggests Dems Never Acknowledged Any Progress In Iraq
November 26, 2007 -- 6:58 PM EST // //

You have to wonder what it would be like to be Joe Lieberman. Only seven years ago he was the Democratic Party's choice for Vice President, and enjoyed all the national attention such an honor entails. Now the only way he can get sucked up to is to go on Fox News and offer up made-to-order fibs about his former party.

Lieberman just went on Fox and gave an extended interview in which he repeatedly suggested that Dems won't acknowledge any progress of any kind in Iraq. "It’s time that everybody including Democratic candidates get off this storyline," Lieberman said.

"Lieberman Back From Iraq: Time For Dems To Admit Progress," the Fox hed says.

Lieberman is lying about the Dem position -- and the evidence is no further away than...the front page of yesterday's New York Times. In an article yesterday, the leading Dems are on record reiterating what's been their position for weeks now: They see some military progress, but note that this progress hasn't produced the political reconciliation that was the original goal of the surge.

Dems have said this again and again and again in recent weeks. Here's Obama, earlier this month:

There is no doubt that because we put American troops in Iraq, more American troops in Iraq, that they are doing a magnificent job.

And they are making a difference in certain neighborhoods. But the overall strategy is failed because we have not seen any change in behavior among Iraq's political leaders.

Here's Hillary, talking about the troops on Meet the Press in September (via Nexis):

There is no doubt that they can fulfill whatever military mission they’re given; they have. They were asked to get rid of Saddam Hussein and they did. They were asked to give the Iraqis the security for fair and free elections and they did. And they were asked to give the Iraqi government the space and time to start making these very difficult political decisions. Our military did everything it was asked to do.

And back in August, John Edwards pointed to "our military's hard-won progress in Al-Anbar province." Multiple other Dems have said stuff like this recently, too.

The key point here is that the falsehood Lieberman is telling here is critical to the GOP's last-ditch efforts to prevent support for the war from dribbling away completely. The game plan is to misrepresent what the Dem position has been, in order to (a) paint Dems as churlishly refusing to acknowledge the military's hard-won gains; and (b) conflate the military progress we've seen with the political progress that was always the goal and that still remains elusive.

Senator Lieberman, Fox News thanks you for your devoted service -- and hereby rewards you with the attention you crave.

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