CNN

One more item–JUst for the record–
OBAMA flatly said the surge would not work–
He has said conditions have improved-
Now the polls are going against him here –most Americans agree by over 10% the surge is a success that even means some of you DEms agree-
This along with the "do not Drill" which now 75% agree we should-
Remember–Clinton could have signed into law -drilling but vetoed it-We would not be in the position we are if he had not dropped to his knees for the envionmental lobby–
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid will not even allow a vote–
I thought their job was to do the peoples work-
Some of the Dems agree-they may not be on this blog but I have no doubt-McCain will WIN–
It won't be because he's so great it will be because Obama is an empty Suit-
Rock Stars don't make PRESIDENT period!

Of course we want them home. Their families want them home. BUT, what awaits the troops when they do get home? If they don't finish what we started, will they only have to go back ? Is this what the troops and their families have to look forward to? We need to finish what we started. If Obama is elected we will have to go back in there to clean up all over again AND it will be bloodier and messier and take a LOT LONGER the next time around. Are we ready for that kind of in-experienced leadership and government expense?
THINK ABOUT IT. The next Presidency is not a PHOTO-OP experience toward post-Presidency speech income. We need a concerned leader NOW. THINK ABOUT IT !

When is McSame going to admit he was wrong for voting for the war in the first place?

If you truly and sincerely want the troops home then there is no way on earth you could possibly vote for McBush, who has already promised us another 100 years of combat in Iraq.

I find the disproportionate reporting by CNN staggering.

I highly doubt the polling question asked, "Do you agree with Senator Barack Obama when he said we should implement a 'strategy that actually concludes our involvement in Iraq and moves Iraqis to take responsibility for the country,' OR do you agree with Senator McCain's plan for non-withdrawal?"

Come on, Give me a break. Check your spelling too . . . "sucess"?! Give me a break. This is supposed to be a credible news organization?

Your website is plastered with campaign ads for Barack Obama, every story is about Barack Obama, everything is about what Barack Obama said in response to McCain. The big, better, more presidential-looking photographs all feature Barack Obama.

And again, CNN overgeneralizes what "most Americans" think based on the most recent new poll.

CNN, step up your game. . . or I'm sad to say I'm switching to Fox News.

Yo SANTE,

Exactly what do you think Karl Rove and his minions did in 2004 with color-coded threat levels and the spectre of gay marriage that they seem to drag out every four years?" Manipulation, PU-LEEZE!

Arrogant is ignoring experienced military personnel telling you how to fight a war and having hacks like Rumsfeld, L. Paul Bremer , et al. run things into the ground....

The surge has been a QUALIFIED success. One of the goals of the surge was to reduce vilolence. The primary goal was for the Iraqi government to complete some benchmarks that would make it more able to survive on its own without military support from the US. It hasn't gotten much closer to that important item. That is why I call it a QUALIFIED success. If the Awakening Councils hadn't started, then it could have been as violent as ever.

This is for Tony C and those like him-
Saddam was killing his own people–
We help people–That is what makes America Great-
THose who are only concerned about their beliefs never make it far-
Maybe that's why we have so many programs-

The problem Tony C and the like is that the Media can't say much that is negative about Iraq so you don't see the progress-
Progress has been unbelievable–
THey are taking over their own security-
There can be peace and we will have a stable ally to prevent that area from blowing up-
By the way-
Almost 2500 Days without a terroist attack on our soil-
Don't any of you Dems ever remember standing in front of the Capital in Unity–
Go get them wherever they hide-
President Bush said it would long war - As soon as the media melded your mind that this terrible you all started believing it-
Your either a leader or a follower-
It's easy to pick out whose who–

hmmm.....

Americans don't want US troops in Iraq.

The US Generals don' want US troops in Iraq.

Our Allies all over the world don't want US troops in Iraq.

Iraqis don't want US troops in Iraq.

Middle eastern countries don't want US troops in Iraq.

Shias don't want US troops in Iraq.

Sunnis don't want US troops in Iraq.

Al Qaeda doesn't want US troops in Iraq.

Get a hint?

Naw, lets vote McCain, stay in Iraq, and let our soldiers die to make W's and Cheney's wallets fatter.

This SURGE is pure BS.
The so called Sunni Awakening is A PAYOFF we the US is giving millions to the Sunni Militias to win them over. Also the fact that SADR
called a cease fire is the reason the violence has dropped. Does anyone remember when the cease fire was broken what happened.

No, listen to McSame and send more. More more more. 100yrs is what he calls out for so send more. Don't you love war America. The sound of the bombs in the air must make us feel feal good. As a matter of fact lets go bomb Iran. War is good don't you just love it.
Obama08 A Dream

The Messiah says I will bring them all home....wait maybe some will need to stay....I will bring them all home....combat forces will leave, but as president reserve the right to go back in, in the event of genocide, etc. That sounds like a plan there. You libs need to wake up to the real Obama. He doesn't have a clue. But hey, keep drinking the kool-aid.

Vietnam era we called it "escalation" and it works for a while. Escalation – surge, who cares. We shouldn't have been there in the first place. U.S. hasn't declared war on any country so what are WE winning.

Yeah the surge is working when the clerics and sheiks are telling their militias to cease fire. If the clerics told their militias to go back to business as usual the surge would only put more American lives in danger.

John hit the nail on the head. We are paying the terrorists with tax-payer money not to kill us!

WAKE UP PEOPLE!

Surge, Surge, Surge if we keep this mess up in Iraq you think you've got financial trouble now. Well as longs as we are supporting/I mean paying the salaries of the Iraq Army, Iraq Policy, and paying the local who were once engineer and other occupations to clean toliets on american bases in Iraq we will forever be in financial turmoil. I hope you do pick John McCain. I love this crash and burn effect. My job is recession proof. As long as we are in Iraq. I will forever be employeed. Please don't end the war. I can used the money. It will pay for my third house.

My line of thought
1. The surge work- exit Iraq
2. The surge did not work- exit Iraq
3. Forces are tired- exit Iraq
4. We going broke- exit Iraq
5, Saddam die- exit Iraq
6. No WMD- exit Iraq
7. They told us to leave- exit Iraq
8 Afgan are starting to kick our butt- exit Iraq
9. Exon,Moblie, Hallibut, Blackwater are rich now- exit Iraq
10. And finally We already won, 60% of USA are thinking a like- exit Iraq!!!!!!!!!!!!

1. Don't really know how to respond to that one other than to say that your a bigtime cynic.

2. Who cares, personally I'm completely against any kind of rights for gays/lesbians/tranny's or whatever, but I'm still supporting him because this kind of issue is nowhere near the forefront of this campaign and I could care less.

3. He's nor arrogant, he's confident. You would be to if almost everything you were running on was going in your favor. There's nothing wrong with it!

4. Let's see he worked his way through different high schools and Harvard Law (which I'm sure is better than SANTE's community college degree), worked as a community organizer anda professor of CONSTITUTIONAL LAW at a Chicago college.

People always hate'in on Obama, but you know what they say about haters, THERE JUST JEALOUS! It's ok!

OBAMA 2008 + 2012

SANTE: You have made very good points They are among the ones that I have asked myself for about a yr. I have emailed and asked and get no response. Just the media follows him around with their nose up his ___ like he is the second coming. SOOOOO OVER RATED.
What a bad choice. So many better dropped out.
Can you believe Warren Buffet is reported to be one of his backers. I thought he was a real tight conservative. So many things in this election are not making sence,

Who cares if the surge was right or wrong – each of us should be outraged at the amount of money that this president and elected officicals have blown on a mission that sure never have been. Instead let each of us start working toward ending this mess, get our young women and men out of the Middle East, and take the money we have been borrowing to support a war and use it to repair the highways and bridges, provides financial aide to our young student trying to attend college, improve our educational systems. If we put funds into repair highway – we can provides jobs to the millions of unemployed individuals. And most of all get rid of the $482B debt that is pulling us under. Think about it

and what would be BoBo time table for Afghanistan? Troops will be killed there too. Germany sending more troops to Afghanistan to help after that whole joke he pulled off in Europe? Nope. I am not impressed with either of these two, but I think given the political winds in washington and the rest of the country, I think Obama will fold like a lawn chair when exposed to political pressure. Actually he has never said anything I wanted to hear so maybe he does have new tricks, I mean new politics.

We should just turn off the news

NObama 08

It's amazing to me that the Republicans can take anything and turn it into a fault. Bush got out of Vietnam. That's great. Kerry went to Vietnam. Let's look at what he really did there. McCain is a war hero because he was shot down. If Obama had been shot down, he would be called a failure.

If Obama were a Republican and McCain were a Democrat, the Republicans would crow about what a boring, uninspiring candidate McCain is–and they would tear up his war record. But because Obama is a Democrat who's also popular and charismatic, well, hey, we'd better go after that.

Let's have an election where the Republican party doesn't dictate the agenda. Or do you really like what they've done so far?

McCain needs to get over himself and the whole "we lose if we set a timetable". America cannot accept this attitude anymore.

Obama '08

It really is too bad that no one appears to read history anymore. If you look at the history of Iraq you would see that the boundaries of Iraq, Iran and other nations there were an arbitrary arrangement established by the English after the 1st WW. There has been a long, long, history of hate between the Sunni, Shi'ite, and the Kurds. When we leave they will probably try to kill each other off. That will be in 18 months or 18 years. There is just too much history for anyone there to let it go. It really is too bad and I sure hope that I am wrong. Bush should have never led us there to begin with and he and Chaney ought to be tried for crimes against humanity after all of the deaths and suffering.

There is no win to an occupation and there is no justification to continuing on with the occupation. The surge is just a McCain talking point to collar the more gullible people into thinking he is some kind of great military mind.

Once the troops leave Iraq the factions will still be fighting each other just like they've done for a thousand years. Saddam Hussien stopped this process to a large degree through brutality and the U.S. has pretty much copied his lead with the exception of paying the insurgents not to fight them.

When the money runs out and the supply of arms run out do you think all these religous zealots are simply going to get together for a great big picnic and then have a love in.

Grow up America! Grow up McCain or get out of your second child hood the best way you can.

It will be a sore testimony to the state of this nation and democratic politics in general if McCain were to win this campaign through commercials that do not provide his positions on the issues, but are fabricated mistruths and lies.

I'm sick of seeing Obama called a snob. He worked in the inner city helping the indigent when he could have enjoyed a job at a top firm anywhere in this country with at least a six-figure salary.

Compare that to glory boy McCain who marries Miss Budweiser and hob-nobs with the elites of the big oil and gun lobbies. If you think Obama is more arrogant or elitist than McCain, then you've let yourself be duped by a liar.

I think the Iraq War was the biggest blunder in American history. I am glad that the Iraq situation is not the all-out war it was, but the republican party deserves the credit for this terrible war. If there is improvement that is good for Iraq. We need to get out of Iraq in the way that Senator Obama wants. I am sick and tired of republicans who obviously have no idea what to do acting like the surge is such a big deal. We have lost thousands of lives – Americans and Iraqis – and for what. We need Senator Obama as our president to lead us out of the horrors of the Bush regime's corruption and total lawlessness.

Whether we are there for another week, 16 months or 100 years, the ingrained ideologies of thousands of years will dictate a surge in violence there after we're gone no matter when our troops come home. Why doesn't Iraq pay for this war with its oil anyway?

The surge was beneficial but it would not have been without the Iraq people taking responsibility from their country which had been kidnapped by Al Quaeda whom came to Iraq in response to the United States invasion. This is not a state to state war where winning and losing is clear. How do you win a war against an ideology?

What's is wrong with this picture.

Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Tinsley dies of gunshot wound.

The Surge has only been credited because the media has placed emphasis on it. If the media would tell the whole true story of how America is paying its enemies not to attack us and "be good" to us, then Americans view of the surge would change.

Quick question – how do you win a war that was begun with lies?

Poor republicans, must be a slow day on fox news....

Bring em home baby...

What difference does it make what worked or not? If you really believe in Democracy, then we should leave, because a majority of Americans and more importantly a majority of Iraqiis don't want our troops there. If you believe that its 'the right thing' to stay despite that, then you must believe a democratic system of government isn't the right thing. Maybe you'd rather us have a theocracy?

Oh please Obama was suppose to bring troops home in 60 days that was his original proposal but then he flip/flopped and now its 16 months. He is covering his behind for another year and a half just in case there is some more violence there.

Would someone please tell McCain that he can claim victory, take full responsibility for the surge (which he claims was an idea he conceived and implemented before the President and Commander in Chief called for it) and bring home our troops. Let's restore families, pour money into rehabilitating and caring for the men and women who have been damaged for life because of this failed policy, and give Obama and others with diverging opinions credit for recognizing this was a loser from the get-go.

Ok? Everyone happy? Every politician gets to shout victory because of me? Ok. Now let's get back to taking care of business of the voters who are sick and tired of paying the bills for this waste and carnage.

Excuse me? WE SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN THERE TO BEGIN WITH!!! Poor judgement on mcsurge's part to even vote for the war but then again he needed to help his oil buddies and Haliburton get those gov contracts over there so I understand. We need peace and mccain wants war. Terrorism has never been so bad since gwb came in the white house. Thanks repuglicans for ruining our country!

To Sante: I think you just succeeded in bringing your racist opinion and beliefs to the forefront for all to see...Unfortunately, you ignored what the topic was about..THE SURGE!! Just as lifting the Executive Ban on Offshore Drilling didn't bring the price of crude oil down (lowest oil consumption by Americans in 2008 since 2003 + Bush Aides talks with Iran have helped)..THE SUCCESS OF THE SURGE is not ONE thing. (MONEY helps+ Iragis wanting their OWN country back helps as well).."SANTE" you will help prove what WE ALL avoid saying..Obama is Black therefore WE AS A PEOPLE WILL NOT VOTE FOR HIM..McCain has been a senator for 20+ years and all of a sudden he states that HE+MCCAIN will bring the change that America needs. Give me a break. Your own racism and hatred should keep you warm and fill your belly while McCain fills the coffers of those he must PAY after he wins the election.

Obama is wrong;al Maliki is wrong; the iraqi people are wrong;Bush is wrong and now the american people are wrong.

mcWAR is CAPITALLY right.

People of the America when are we going to stop believing this right side media CNN,MSNBC ,ABC and Fox. It was the media fault why we have the Bush mob. There polls are not true. DO NOT BELIEVE THE MEDIA LIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To SANTE
You come off sa a Homobia and a I am not racist racist you are hitting all of the buzz words and ideas .and pharses. What to you mean that he Arrogant what you mean to say is that he is uppitty and should the 45 year comment is that he should stay in his place.

It's funny that people call obama arrogant. The whole Bush administration is the poster child of arrogance. mccain says he's different than Bush but why do you think all the conservatives are behind him? If He's elected we will stay in Iraq and probably go to war with Iran too. As a woman there is absolutely nothing he has to offer me. A republican in the White House equals more of the same. We need a change in this country. We need to be respected by the world again. If you believe John Mccain is the answer then God help us all.

Obama has no idea how to be COMMANDER IN CHIEF!!!

He declared, BEFORE he left to visit Iraq, his strategy for DEFEAT. Then he gets to Iraq and says...well lets not be hasty, we want to win but I am not so sure about bringing our troops home just yet.

He is so full of crap...you can smell it from here.

At least McCain has a solid idea, from talking to MILITARY experts and not Wesley Clark (who was remove from command), about military actions.

For all of you idiots who say the troops should never have been sent...get real!!! Your beloved Hillary Clinton voted for the invasion. Oh, and before you start spouting about "Bush Lied"...let me remind you that EVERYONE in the WORLD thought Saddam had WMD.

Is this the same building (right of the bachoe) where an Army officer was electrocuted by faulty wiring by the Army Core Engineers who were supposed to fix the problem??? Anyone...

Right... the half-black guy who grew up in a broken home and was ultimately raised by his grandparents before working his way into a good college and into success is the arrogant snob...

...but the guy who was born the son and grandson of admirals, who managed to get flight clearance despite his abysmal performance at West Point because of his family connections, who managed to keep his flight clearance after crashing 3 planes, who married a multimillionaire heiress with hundreds of millions of dollars, who hasn't held a real job in 25 years... HE'S not a snob. He's in touch with you, the average American.

SOME TIME IT IS HARD TO BELIEVE HOW STUPID MOST AMERICANS ARE . I WOULD NOT CARE IF MCCAIN WAS ELECTED BUT THIS AFFECTS ME ALSO .FOR THOSE WHO WILL NOT ELECT OBAMA DONT YOU LEARN. YOUR MEMORY MUST BE REAL SHORT. DO YOU THING THIS MCCAIN MORON CAN EVEN THINK. WELL AS ALL THE FOREIGNERS KNOW MOST AMERICANS ARE DUMB NOW GO AND PROVE IT.

OBAMA...08.......

The War is over McSurge. We won! Bring our Heroes Home. The Iraq Government says thank you ,go home. The Iraqi people say go home. Our failing economy says come home. Our trillion dolar debt says, come home. Only McWar and the Oil Corporations say , stay and babysit.

Americans have spoken now bring the troops back home. Mcsurge how are you going to defend this poll, – iraqis want us out, America public want troops home,.....are we talking senile here?

Why don't we just fire all the troops, close down the Pentagon and not have a military?
The way people are talking on here it appears that is what they want.

I personally would consider it;
Once every other country in the World does it too.
Our governments are all united (socialists, communists, democracy) in that one aspect.
WE all understand that to maintain sovereignty, we need a means to protect ourselves.

The iraq war was stupid but we created it and the majority of America supported it (ugh) and we need to finalize it properly. Noone on the planet can afford another unstable government in the Middle East, or anywhere else for that matter.
That's how we got WW2, Afghanistan (see Charlie Wilsons war), and so many other post-war catastrophies–including our post Civil War era.
We need to do it right for once.

Was there ever any doubt in people's minds that if we put more soldiers into Iraq to kill more people, that violence would go down?? If you kill everyone, they can't fight back. Of course the surge worked! Will a surge help the country of Iraq in the long run? NO. Will it get our economy back on track? NO. Will it stabilize the region forever? NO. Therefore, it is a failure.

What about the surge in money going to friend and foe to cool it? I
will go with the surge if it will bring the troop's home.

S King
Sonora Ky.

As someone who was against the war, I fully agree with the belief that the surge has worked to reduce violence in the area. So, if we are looking at the war from that one singular perspective, McCain does deserve credit for supporting the surge. Unfortunately, this comes after we lost over 3,000 men and women fighting for a war that he should have never supported as well as taking our eyes of of Afghanistan. We will never hear him admit to these errors while constantly trying to claim all of the praise for the other.

its not about the surge, nor the strategy, its about the ilegal war, imoral war, criminal war, war against humanity that need to go to war crime trabunal in the Hegue.

Some of you Obama bashers need to GROW THE HELL UP!
Jeeze, do you even THINK before you start typing???

And CNN, there are two "C's" in success – get it together

As usual, the American people are smarter than the politicians.

You can argue all day about whether it was right or wrong to start the war in Iraq. Either way that is history.

Once we were there it was a whole new ballgame. The significant change is strategy last year which involved not only more troops (the surge), but also a whole coungterinsurgency strategy is succeeding.

This success will allow the US to withdraw from Iraq over a period of time, leaving behind a country that can be stable and defend itself.

I believe in fact not much would be different under either McCain or Obama, but my perception is that McCain believes in leaving successfully and Obama believes in just leaving no matter what the results.

I'd rather the US left responsibly and successfuly which I believe we can do

What were we successful at?

Killing Saddam even though he didn't have WMD? Destroying a sovereign country infrastructure, only to have to rebuild it with US dollars?
Bringing gas prices down from $1.72 a gallon?

Again, how were we winning? What's the price? It is absolutely ridiculous to say we are succeeding. If you say violence is down; think about this: It would have never been up or existed if bush and his war criminals had not lied and started this illegal war.

CNN, I am sick of your negative stories about Senator Obama! Why is the story about Obama's ad about McCain all the way down? The worst news organization in the worrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrld! CNN, CNN, CNN.

Yeah! Somehow, I get the feeling that the murders of over 4000 American men and women soldiers are quite enough! Duh!

Iraq does not appreciate us nor do they want us there any longer. I say pull out and let them sink or swim on their on. I'm tired of paying for some desert rat to have new building while our troops are being electrocuted while taking showers.

Hey Sante,
You must be the dumbest ignoramus on this blog...It's people like you that need to be educated about the issues. I'm tired of people voting based on emotions rather than real issues. Obviously McCain's demonizing OBAMA is working b/c he's catching up to him in the polls. It's a shame America still wants to continue in the same downward spiral. I don't care what OBAMA has not done, in fact, the reason why i'm voting for him is b/c is NEW!!!! the old farts in washington including McCain hasn't done much in the several decades they've been there, and so the inexperience on OBAMA's part is a big PLUS.

Obama is proud of his stance on the issues, McFlip-Flop changes his stance everyday!

Obama 08 and 12

What about a poll saying we should not have attack Iraq?

First, we should have never been in Iraq, it looks like we should have gone to Afghanistan. Second, the Iraqi people don't want us there, and we know that the U.S. would not let another country tell us how to run America. Yes, the number of lives lost has dropped dramatically, but one lose is too many. That money being spent everyday over there could be better spent on more pressing issues right here in the U.S. or in Afghanistan.

OK the surge worked, we won, bring troops home or redploy to Afghanistan. What did we win? A cupie doll? We Won over 4100
United States Military Killed!!! We won (a figure I heard yesterday from
two reliable sources) 1,000,000 Iraqi citizens Killed!!!! Untold injured.
Which amounts to Millions of people who's lives are changed forever.
We have lost fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, friends & lovers.
Etc. If you call that winning then Keep on keepin' on. You freaking repullithugs still drinking the koolaid and saying what a good president Bush is and how you're gonna vote for the same have no clue what it is to see friends being blown to bits before your eyes. that
IS what happened to many. Think long and hard about it– - – –
A vote for Obama and we have hope this will change- -A vote for Mcain and we will live with more of the same thing. He has no plan. It is easier to just stay the course

SANTE nice homophobic and racists statements.

James From Chicage July 31st, 2008 11:27 am ET

I think McCain knows what he is talking about. He will bring the troops
home, but when it is safe for everyone. Obama has no clue of what
should or should not be done. Just because he tours overseas like
a Rock Star for PR reasons only, that does not make him an authority

What exactly is, "SAFE," for everyone? How more Americans need to die before it is, "SAFE," for everyone? We were never invited to Iraq. We were never thanked for our occupation of Iraq. We lost over 4,300 American lives in Iraq. Over 500,000 Iraqis have dies as a direct result of our invasion. Everyday tens of Iraqis die. Yes, the SURGE has worked. Less of us die there every day, but the Iraqis continue to die by our interventions. If you really want the SURGE to work, bring our people HOME (by the way a surge is a limited time increase – but in this case there are more troops on the ground today than there were from the initial SURGE). How can they be any safer than being at home?

yep,bring them home, obama! even grumpy ole man agrees with you

SANTE is hilarious. What a jerk.

Americans want what is best for this country! Yes,what parent wouldn't want a child home,but I feel sure we all want them returning home having done the job! We want the troop withdrawal,but withdrawn depending on conditions on the ground,and in a manner that is indicative of a job well done! American's determination to complete a job will define us to the Taliban! We'll only have their respect if we prove our resolve.

Obama said that the surge would never work and would lead to more casualties. So much for his judgement.

Time to go back to hanging posters on telephone polls in Southside Chicago.

And I also think McCain wants to bring us home as soon as it's safe. one word obama doesn't use. the hell with safety, just use that timeline. the hell with what the generals say, just use that timeline. Way to keep america safe obama!You idiot!

I am so tired of hearing about this surge that McBush is so proud of. If he really wanted our troops to be safe then he would not have helped to start this war. McBush will destroy this country if he is elected. Obama is the only one who has the ability to put this country back on track to where it should be.

Obama '08

In 25 years in the Senate people should be able to rattle off at least 50 things John McCain has done. Other than being a POW (meaning, he wasn't smart enough not to get caught) and the McCain, Ffeingold act that he is ignoring...what has McCain done other than agree with Bush?

Wake up America, we need a change and McCain aint it...

Troops are coming home you liberal sissies. Many troops have already returned. Tours are being cut. That's all thanks to McCain's troop surge. Too bad yellow-bellied Obama didn't support it.

McCain...A PROVEN Leader

Housing crisis,
Economy nightmare
Gas hike
Government deficit
Education
Healthcare

These are issues American people facing on a daily basis
Don’t you think your country men should be more concerns about your domestic issues first before spending Billion of dollars in Iraq

Although ages is not a big deal but McCain is turning 72 years old, many of his ideas still way off from a newer and fast growing generation, and his ideas seem to going on a one way direction

Obama is a youthful 40ish with new ideas and keep up with new generations, he may not have much of experience but what he has that McCain doesn’t’ is “Time” and Leadership ability”
And by the way, being a leader doesn’t mean you have to lead alone. A good leadership listens to other ideas and suggestions then use them to make a better thing happens..

Hey! And I am not even an American Citizen! 

Ther should never been a Surge if you Idiots wouln't have fell for BUSH and his MERRY MENS LIES.

I blame AMERICAN VOTERS FOR THESE CRIMES BECAUSE THEY VOTED FOR HIM TWICE !!!

REALLY?????? NO ONE POLLED ME. No one has polled millions. And who cares if the surge worked?????????

IS THE ELECTION ABOUT THE SURGE? OR IS IT ABOUT THE NEED FOR CHANGE?

How about our economy? How about the NATIONAL DEBT of $10 TRILLION?

The deficit of $490 BILLION?????????????

How about the $1.38 BILLION A DAY WE ARE SPENDING IN IRAQ?

IF THE SURGE WAS A SUCCESS WHY DO WE STILL HAVE 150K TROOPS ON THE GROUND????????????????????????????????

I believe it is working. Slowly but surly. What so many don't seem to realize is that when we are not fighting against a country, like wars have been fought for ever, but radicals and crazies that are coming out of the shadows. They really have no country as yet. They want the world not just a country.
If anyone thinks that pulling out of Iraq like Obama wants is going to stop this then I feel sorry for your lack of judgement. Bush got us into this horrid mess. My feelings are we didn't have to go in at the time we did. That just goes to show that our intelligence is a far cry from being flawless and with a bull headed Pres like Bush it was bound to happen and we took our eye off the real instigator–bin Laden.
Now we have an immature man running that has not a clue on National Security and the relationship to that and oil independence. Everything he wants is 40 yrs down the road. No ideas on how to get out of this economic mess NOW.
McCain has issues, no health care reform, women's rights, ideas for a balanced budget or getting Social Security back on track. But if get Obama we won't need this stuff because taxs are going to be so high to take care of all his programs and we will be very suseptical to bad things happening to our country as long as there are power hungry idiots that are out of touch with the American people like Pelosi. To bad the people of America can't get her removed and get some one wiith common sence.

Obama is a peacock. I don't like him. I am a blue blooded Democrat, Black and a woman and god knows I have tried to warm up to him since Hillary dropped out of the race.

I watched his speech, was very worried on these flip-flops but I excused him because I know that most politicians will say anything to get elected, but I don't know, I just can't stand the guy. He's already acting as Mr. President and that's okay, but this new swagger he has reminds me a lot of Bush.

I just don't like what I think is beneath that suit. I don't trust him and I've never voted for anyone I didn't trust.

Does nobody realize that the Nader/Gonzalez campaign is the only campaign committed to removing troops immediately?

** Nader/Gonzalez 2008 **

Why shoud we continue to pay for the occupation of Iraq? We have a dismal economy here with many communities suffering from lost of jobs.

Obama will end the war and bring the troups home, McCain first said 100 years and now he is following Obama- the repubs are not to be trusted this time around, not this year.

End the war, save the economy. Exxon Mobil $1,500 profit per second and the people will not see a penny of that, but when the big companies are about to go under, the people pay to keep them running- that is the repubs and McCain policy of the same.

Landslide Obama 08/12.

There are many reaons there is improvement in iraq .NO one talks about the decrease in the population contribute to this also .Millions of the Iraqis fleed the violenceand went into oher countries,there were improvement in the US military supply and equipment so our men and women were able to proform their duties better even though they did a fantastic job in the manner in which they were ordered to do.There are other reasons for improvement not only the surge .The length of time we are in Irqa also contributes to the improvement.

Hey Matt: We certainly do need Troops in Afghanistan (where we should have stayed-NEVER to have ventured into IRAQ). Our priorites have been TOTALLY IRRESPONSIBLE. I believe American's are smart enough to know why we're in Iraq-BEING THAT BUSH COMPLETELY LIED. America's AT RISK, as long as (1) We're in Iraq (2) Don't secure the Borders (3) Thinking that we control the World.

When will we/American's learn to take care of home first (1) Infactructure in our nation has depreicated (2) The elderly are suffering.

It goes to show that when you have a destructive mind-set, those little things are Minor!!!

SANTE July 31st, 2008 11:22 am ET

WHERE DO I START?

1) FIRST OFF, YOUR WRITTEN ENGLISH IS HORRIBLE, NO OFFENSE.

2) I THINK HE ATTRACTS MORE OF AN EDUCATED (NOT SNOB AS YOU PUT IT) CROWD BECAUSE HE'S A THINKER AND TELLS YOU LIKE IT IS AND NOT TRYING TO PUSH NONSENSE LIKE GAS TAX HOLIDAYS ONTO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.

3) HOMOSEXUALS ARE AND HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A DEMOCRAT LEANING GROUP. HOW MANY REPUBLICAN GAYS DO YOU KNOW? ALSO, WHY EVEN BRING THIS TOPIC UP UNLESS YOU ACTUALLY DO HAVE A PROBLEM WITH GAYS, WHICH I'M GUESSING YOU DO.

4) THE FACT THAT YOU EVEN BROUGHT UP HIS COLOR MEANS THAT ITS AN ISSUE. THE ISSUE IS PEOPLE ARE THROWING THIS ARROGANT TERM AROUND AS A CODE FOR SAYING UPPITY. YOU KNOW, BLACKS WERE NOT EVEN SUPPOSE TO LEARN HOW TO READ SO HOW DARE ONE TRY TO SHOW PEOPLE THAT HE CAN BE PRESIDENTIAL WHILE RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.

5) IN 45 YEARS BEFORE HE RAN HE GREW UP, WENT TO COLUMBIA AND GRADUATED WITH HONORS, WENT TO HARVARD LAW AND WAS THE FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT OF THE HARVARD LAW REVIEW, TURNED DOWN MANY TOP PAYING JOBS TO WORK AS A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER, WROTE TWO NYT BESTSELLERS, SPENT YEARS AS A STATE SENATOR AND NOW IS A US SENATOR AND THE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. NOT TO MENTION HE'S RAISING TWO BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTERS. I'M GUESS YOUR RESUME IS NOT EVEN 1/100TH AS IMPRESSIVE.

Obama won't admit the surge worked in Iraq, but wants one in Afghanistan. The surge is now over, and US casualties were at their lowest level since the war began last month. Is Obama blind? Maybe he should have spent more time listening to the commanders on the ground and less time posing for photo ops on his trip. He's clueless about the war.

After spending Millions of dollars and over 4000 of our troops killed and almost 20,000 wonded you call this success, what did united stated get by invading Iraq, Al Quaeda and the terrorist are as strong as ever they are in Afganistan we still have to fight them so what success are Mccain and Bush talking about.

This is the kind of "public opinion" you get when you ask a simplified question to a complex issue. Has "the surge" succeeded or failed well it what context? If you mean as part of a multi-component effort in reducing sectarian violence and helping to stabilize Iraq. Well then yes it has tacticly succeeded in its contribution to the overall conditions. But the conditions seen today are not just a result of "the surge" as McCain and Bush would like the public to believe. What Bush conveniently fails to mention is, or in McCain's version which re-orders the history of events to minimize, the effect of the Anbar Awakening and the millions of dollars the US is paying to Iraqi's "to keep the peace".

After spending Millions of dollars and over 4000 of our troops killed and almost 20,000 wonded you call this success, what did united stated get by invading Iraq, al quida and the terrorist are as strong as ever they are in Afganistan we still have to fight them so what success are Mccain and Bush talking about.

It was the wrong war from day one the IRAQ war was a personal issue with Bush and Bush DAD about hussien when should had been more focus on OBL. OBAMA 08

We are seeing the Surge vs ???. If we take into account all that happended it has been effective. However, we do not know what is the most effective part of the strategy. Obama agrees the Surge has played a role. McCain defines these same strategies as the Surge.

McCain was never a military commander. He is using his years in the Senate to bulk up this precieved leadership. When it comes to Obama- he is using judgement and his advisors. The difference McCain goes overseas and tells us he knows those people. Obama goes oversease and those people show us they like him.

We have entered a global world. If America wants to remain a Super Power than Obama is the only choice. Sound judgement.

It's apparent the serge did work and also Obama doesn't have a clue! Personally I'm not all for McCain but YES eventually the troops will be out of Iraq and then we can all sing:

Well it's 123 what are we fighting for,
Don't ask me I don't give a dam,
The next stop is Afghanistan!

Now that I've shown my age I will not be voting for some inexperienced "Rock Star" who's going to raise my taxes on everything on up to my retirement funds!

McCain it is in 2008 whether you like it or not. America is not stupid enough to put Obama in the White House!!!!!

The Iraqi people owe us a lot for their new freedom.

We should be there as long as is necessary to ensure they repay some of that debt, particularly in the economic and oil realm.

Wouldn't it be nice to move some America busiesses there too. Perhaps–due to their low wages, we can find a place for the millions of blue/white workers whose jobs were exported to India, Indonesia, and China.

matt,

we're already in afghanistan and pakistan, brainiac.

The point that all of these fools who cheerlead the "surge" is that we should have never been there. There is little crime in a town with a cop on every corner either. To claim the "surge" to be any kind of victory is showing that you don't have any understanding of the culture you are dealing with. This isn't over.

hey matt,

Osama Bin Laden was never in Iraq, noone from Iraq attacked the twin towers. He is in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the only places we EVER should have had soldiers fighting terrorism. Obama is not trying to increase the wars, he is trying to fix the enormous trillion dollar bloodbath Bush started just so his cronies could make a fortune. He wants responsible withdrawal with a timetable that pushes the Iraqis into self reliance.

McCain only decided to back that, what, a week ago? Now he tries to make it sound like HIS idea even though the Dems have been asking for it for over a year? pathetic.

Who are we fighting in Iraq again, after 6 years they could at least define it? The Sunnis, The Shiites, the Baathists, the insurgents who are just groups of Sunnis and the Shiites who want us to leave, sounds like all Iraqis are the enemy, what a recipe for sucess, talk about poor execution on the Republicans part.

Why is it that McCain never wears a "flag pin" but Barack takes so much heat if he doesn't wear one?

On his trip to Iraq, Senator McCain required John Leiberman to explain the difference between the Sunni's, the Shiite's, and the risk posed by Iran!! McCain=Dubya

With all due respect to President Bush, his administration's absolute blunders in Iraq or the war itself to begin with are one thing, but my fellow Americans saying 'Yes' to troops surge is working, however true it may be, makes me so sad.

Saying 'yes' to the question gives a chance to the malicious individuals in this administration and all who supported the faulty Iraq War to go out in public and manipulate the innocents by telling them 'see, we told you so'....... THAT IS JUST SAD.

OBAMA CAMPAIGN: dont make kerrys mistake of NOT going on the attack against Mclame: attack with all the flip flops, attack his blunders, attack his age, in a word: attack, attack, attack, attack ad works!!

7/29 was the 41 anniversary of the tragedy aboard the USS Forrestal. a day where 134 crewmen where killed and another 161 wounded. some reports indicate that John Mccain wet started his Sky Hawk, which led to a series of explosions. the brave men of the USS Forrestal fought for some 20 hrs to contain the blaze. John Mccain was immediately transferred to another ship the USS Oriskany (the only Forrestal crewman to be immediately transferred). A few month later John McCain would get shot down and captured by the Vietcong, he had by his own admission while being a POW gave up Military information to the enemy, garnishing McCain with the nickname…SONGBIRD. in 1973 returning home McCain would soon start having an affair with Cindy Lou, his now second wife. his then current wife Carol, who was a model at one point and the mother of his first children was in a car accident which left her dis figured. Mccain left her to marry Cindy 1 month after the divorce was final…thin ink had not dried. using Cindy's vast fortune McCain got into politics. he had risen from scandals including Keating 5 to reports of an affair with a lobbyist. Now John Mccain wants us to vote for him….i think NOT. i could not in good conscience vote for a man who graduated 894 out of 899, has 59 lobbyist working on his campaign ,1)Wayne Berman- chevron 2)Frank Donatelli-EXXON 3) Eric Burgeson-BP 4)Rabecca Anderson- Sunco 5) CHARLIE BLACK-OCCIDENTAL PETROLIUM 6)Nancy Pfotenhauer-KOCH (who is looking tattered defending McCain) 7) Randy Scheunemann-BP Amco….to name a few. who will do or say ANYTHING to get a vote, offers NO solution only attacks, has that kind of temper, finds the only answer to a problem is WAR, the American people need to know the truth about this man.
the media is still covering the 2000 Mccain, who has been LONG GONE. start doing your job CNN- so America does not make its biggest gaffe in 8 years.

No kidding...wasn't that the whole point of the surge? the troops did great. the commanders are awsome and the iraqies just needed some overwhelming support to provide security so they can re-group their country. Mccain had the sense to call for the surge and I am grateful for it. Matters not how you slice and dice and spin this scenario. The reality is quite simple......political solutions needs stability. stability needs security. security was established via the surge. Thus Surge = security, stablity and now political solutions.

I tell you what...America needs to stop paying all the Iraq's the hundreds of dollars per month it dishes out and then evaluate that the surge has worked. You know this whole "did the surge work or not" thing is a bunch of crap. Of course if you send in another 30,000 of the most highly trained soldiers in the world they are going reduce the violence in the area.
The TRUE indication that the surge worked is the removal of ALL U.S. soldiers and for the peace to remain. Everyone seems to want to forget the the TRUE PURPOSE of the surge was to allow political solutions to occur so the country could thrive WITHOUT our troops!!
Until they are withdrawn completely and the Iraqi government is sound and functioning we can not get overly optimistic or know FOR SURE that the surge was a complete success.

Poll: Americans think surge a sucess, want troops home
Oh, by the way CNN, success has two C's. Might try spell-check.

Obama is a closet warmonger–he wants to pull out of a war we have almost won and take us to a longer, bigger war which we cannot win. Everything has to be bigger and more ostentatious for Obama to latch onto it. Don't let him fool you, lefties–with his ego, there will be more problems with other countries than you ever dreamed possible.

I still think it was a combination of the Anbar Awakening and our military troops...remember, the awakening happened 4 months before the surge. I also agree with John; paying the insurgents not to attack us was also a factor.

Yes, get the troops out. Its what we've been saying for years. Its what the [D]s have been saying for years.

The problem is the [R]s really don't want the troops out. As someone already pointed out: what is "victory" during an occupation? The [R]s have never given a cogent answer on this. They continue to frame the whole mess as a "war" - even though the decider-in-charge has already declared "mission accomplished" years ago. We won what little war there was.....and since then we have been an occupier and a referee in a civil war. And for that, our great "decider" chooses to sacrifice our troops, our sons and daughters. What new "mission" are they sacrificing for?

The problem all along has been: just what is the [R] "misson" in Iraq? We've been given vacuous excuses, explanations, and outright lies....and the [R] true believers buy right into the mindless prevarication, including the discredited McCain.

So we come full circle. Yes, BRING THE TROOPS HOME. I don't care how you [R]s justify it - you can even call it 'victory', but: BRING THE TROOPS HOME.

As a Marine Corps Veteran of several conflicts, war and other expeditions you people seem to have no clue what serving your country is all about. It takes a unique individual to serve ones country for the beliefs and ideals that made this nation great.

We are sent into harms way for any number of reasons for which we do not question. We take our orders and serve with the utmost professionalism. Sure mistakes may be made along the way, however we over come, adapt and continue.

I would prefer we not leave Iraq until things are in place for Iraqi Security forces to take over. If not, you will dishonor those who have served bravely and sacraficed many things. That is what being a Marine is. God, Corps and country.

If Obama is elected as like Clinton has done in the past, he will devastate the military, slash their funding and probaly not even visit with wounded troops.

Think People before you vote. Is this the man (rock star) you want running a great nation?

Semper Fi!

Senator McCain seems to be obsessed with war. I really don't understand why he insists on Obama admit to him anything. I just want my children home. It was Afghanstan that attacked us and if I lost my child their the sorrow wouldn't be a great, but McCain helped Bush avenge his father with the blood of our children in Iraq when we could have been captured the real culprits. I think Mr. McCain has residual effects from the failures of Viet Nam and feels that Iraq can vendicate him. While I respect that he is "a war hero" it does not make him an authority on war. BRING OUR CHILDREN HOME!!! WE care far more for them than we do the oil in Iraq.

surge a success? hahahaha oxymorgon

u.s. troop deaths were 48 a month before sadaam fell. that number has risen to 78.

if the surge has been a success, then george bush is a genius...

How can comments like Sante's get approved? thats clearly racist, homophobic, and complete naivety

Mccain seems to be a nice guy but he is just too old, he doesn't work on the weekend, how about 3 a.m phonce call, 72 years old man President of the usa, are we kidding!

Increasing troop strength by too many in Afghanistan is an unwise decision. We already carry the largest burden of transport, services, logistics, and military personnel on the ground.

Food for thought:

When do the other NATO allies begin carrying their share of the burden. Too often in the past–political climates at home has forced our allies to reduce or eliminate their support–and we'll be left holding the bag.

As the Russian's learned during their decade long excursion into Afghanistan–they are an uneducated foe–but hardy, rugged, and have never been conquered in nearly 1,000 years despite attempts by far superior technology and forces.

Sante, you are an indication of just how desperate McCrypt and Crew are. They are apparantly reduced to paying folks with a 3rd grade education to post to this thread. Your cognitive process is the equilivant of an emotionally arrested individual of about age 8 Your spelling indicates that a 3rd grade education may be a stretch.

On the plus side, perhaps you can explain to McCrypt how to access the internet, during a time when you both share a lucid moment.

What did the surge accomplish? Less violence? If so, among who?
there have been reports that we paid people to not fight, if true, how long will the suposed calm last.
And just what war are we winning? There is no reason for us to be there. There was no true enemy, unless we wanted to topple Hussein which we did ages ago.
How can we say something is a success when there is no real clear direction as to why we were there in the first place.
If you walk up an punch someone on the street, unprovoked, and they mildly swing back, but eventually just do nothing, did you win a fight or just show you were the bigger bully?

"6 percent say the insurgents are on top."

This would be Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Dick Durbin, Jon Murtha, Barack Obama and the rest of the democrats in congress.....they wish the insurgents were on top.

Here we go again. Another poll with reults that are declared "Most Americans."

Tell all of us:
1. How many people were polled?
2. What was the geographic? Nationwide? Eastern, Western?
3. Was the poll conducted with land-lines only or were cell phones called?

Shouldn't you state that "Of those polled, the majority....." or, better yet, "Of the 1500 people contacted, the majority...."

This is why people out here are tired of all the polls. They are NOT representative of the nation, only a very minute segment and should not be stated as representing "All Americans." It's simply not true.

What Americans don’t know is that the political reconciliation going on in Iraq will continue with or without the presence of US military forces. Barack Obama correctly predicted that the so called surge was not and is not needed. Senator Obama has correctly stated that what is needed is political, economic and diplomatic support for the Iraqis to complete the rationalization of their own political, economic and social lives. The Iraqis want to live in peace just as much as we do. Senator McCain has got it all wrong about how long the US military forces should stay in Iraq. Senator Obama has got it right by insisting that a phased withdrawal is the best policy for us, the Iraqis and the world.

@SANTE: Please, take fifth grade English. It would do you good.

I wouldd like to know if wre worried about people killing each other in iraq why aren't we doing something about the killing here in the U.S.A.. I worry more about someone here killing me more than a terroist. Askl your self when was the last time someone in your family was killed by a terroist. I still want to thank those who are in Iraq.

Yes, the surge is a success, and our troops will be able to leave. But squeezing the Iraq balloon will move them to Afghanistan, where Al-Qaida is. If you listen carefully, Obama isn't saying there will be no increase of troops in Afghanistan. He has just objected to the war in Iraq.

The other day a story about Sen Obama was posted at 630am. The comments were closed soon after it posted and all the comments were from the previous day. CNN censorship???

Unfortunately it was the same old hate comments that fill these pages. If you want someone to take you seriously show some maturity. It is Sen Obama and Sen McCain. Not all the other smear names people use. Grow up, name calling belongs in elementry school. I don't even read the comments with mcsame, mcbush, Abu Obama, etc.

p.s. President Bush is not running this year. The elections of 2000 and 2004 are in the past. Get over it. The Democrats haven't had much luck getting anything meaninful done either and Congress has a lower approval rating than the president. Throw out the incumbents in Congress if you really want change. A President alone will not be able to do it.

As a Democrat, I refuse to vote for Obama. He cannot admit when he was wrong, he doesn't have stance or plan for anything.

Sorry, but we cannot run this country on hope and dreams.

Obama doesn't want to do anything about the price of gas, the war in Iraq, or Afghanistan.

He doesn't care about the average American, only himself.

Vote for America, not American Idol.

Vote for McCain.

mccain is an idiot with bush and his supporters.

What garbage ... the majority of American didn't want the troops to go in the first place and the oil from Iraq isn't making its way to America ... it is going to China.

This whole endeavor has been nothing short of a disaster on all levels.

Our troops have been stationed in Germany protecting our Eurpoean interests since WWII and in Japan for the same duration in Asia. South Korea for 50 years. Iraq will be the base of the future protecting our interests in the Middle East. It goes with the territory; we're a super power! When Senator McCain said we may be in Iraq for a 100 years, we may be in Iraq for a hundred years. Same with Germany, Japan, and South Korea. As a super power we're fulfilling the dual role as a super power protecting our own interests in those regions as well as our allies. McCain has stated the truth from the beginning of his campaign. Obama has talked of a pipe dream. The old warrior knows what he's talking about and that's who I want protecting this country, not some first term Senator.

Sante,

Please crawl back under whatever rock you came out from. You must have a grade 3 education to use the kinds of arguments you have. Please read a real book and visit Obama's site before spewing your garbage. I really hope the people are smarter that this or the US is in really big trouble. – Grab a Brain don't vote McCain.

The surge was not a success. That's like taking asprin when you have the flu....getting better....and then saying it was the asprin.....you would have gotten over the flu anyway and violence would have decreased anyway. The difference in the violence is that troops are finally being given the equipment then should have had from the start. If you are going to start a pointless war you should at least equip your troops!!!!

Looks like Grampy McSurge is due for a few more flip-flops in the next day or two, my friends. But he NEVER said timetable. Lyin' old relic.

That first comment made me laugh. Only the supremely retarded think Obama's a snob. They are too stupid to know what's best for the country (or themselves) but too arrogant to admit that perhaps someone else might be smarter than them. You have to wonder about the other people on here that support McCain. To think a continuation of Bush is a good thing is tantamount to clinical insanity. These people should have their voting rights stripped and be sterilized before they pollute the gene pool.

I can't believe how dumb Americans are. The surge worked? Oh really? You change strategy 5 years into a war...GOOD PLAN! Especially when generals at the beginning said we'd need way more than the surge could ever supply.

Also: Over 2 million Iraqis (especially of honorable/needed professions like doctors and lawyers) left the country, and an estimated 600,000-1,000,000 have died. So when approx. 10% of your country leaves or dies, there are simple LESS PEOPLE TO KILL. Sorry its a fact, which are the enemies of conservatives.

And let’s not forget the surge did exactly what critics of it said it would. THE VIOLENCE MOVED SOMEWHERE ELSE, most notably Afghanistan.

God if America votes McCain I seriously may leave this country. Love the country, hate the people. Our founders based this gov't around the belief that there would be a well informed citizenry. Much of our country is in terrible shape, the internet is here and readily available for people to make informed decisions, except people that get hurt (by mainly republican agendas) vote through their ignorance for the one's that actually hurt them.

AMERICA PLEASE WAKE UP ITS NOT OK TO BE IGNORANT

Let's see... Obama said the surge had nothing to do with quelling violence and stabilizing Iraq... apparantly it was all just the good will of those "zany" "madcap" Iraqis themselves that did it. In other words, Obama thinks the surge was not successful.

However, due to the stability created in Iraq, he wants to divert troops from Iraq to Afghanistan, where, according to Obama, they need more "boots on the ground" (i.e. a "surge" of troops).

Make up your mind, Oh Great and Enlightened Obamessiah, either a surge works or it does not.

This makes about as much sense as Nancy Pelosi saying that drilling for more oil to add to the market will not bring prices down, but somehow diverting 700M barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve WILL magically bring down prices. Hey Nancy, you've been smoking too much of the "San Francisco Treat."

What the hell difference does it make where the oil comes from? If adding oil from the SPR will lower the price of gas, why won't oil from a different source? I mean, either adding more product to a given market will lower prices or it will not, make up your mind. THIS shining example, ladies and gentlemen, is why we need MANDATORY K-12 economics education.

Which Americans?

Where are they from?

I hate CNN and their redundant, ridiculous polls!!!!

ok, a. I'm not a snob and I'm voting for Obama – stop judging people you don't know, Sante.

b. McCain says the surge "is" succeeding after he said it had already succeeded. Make up your mind! At least Obama wants troops in the right places (like Afghanistan and Pakistan) to FIND BIN LADEN instead of continuing this useless war that should never have been started.

Some of you people make me so sick with the lies and hate you spread.

It's 4th down and a lot. Lets punt.

I hate to nitpick CNN but this article is what you and most media sources continue to do. Regarding McCain "52% find the surge a success" / Regarding Obama 60% "APPEAR " to agree with Obama about getting out of Iraq. It is always different wording and always questioning any positive news about Obama.

mccain cannot withdraw our troops,because they are there to protect his buddie's oil profits.if we dont elect obama,we can keep counting our dead ,in iraq.

The surge was not a success. That's like taking asprin when you have the flu....getting better....and then saying it was the asprin.....you would have gotten over the flu anyway and violence would have decreased anyway. The difference in the violence is that troops are finally being given the equipment then should have had from the start. If you are going to start a pointless war you should at least equip your troops!!!

As comments are closed for the previous blog, I am going to leave my comments here.

Close scrutiny of poll history shows a different tren. McCain seems to have had a bump in midJune but Obama's latest numbers show he is slowly starting to gain again.

eg: Ohio 07/21 McCain +10
07/23-29 Obama +2

Florida: 06/27-29 McCain +8
07/23-29 Obama +2

Missouri: 07/07 McCain +5
07/07-10 Obama +5

Obama also has consistently done better than the margin of error in all polls in Oregon (average +6.7) and Washington (+10.6) which makes one wonder when they will be placed in the Obama column.

Anyone who calls McCain's election a "third Bush term" is off-track. Even if some of their stands run parallel, it's the final solution and application that count. Unlike Bush, McCain is an experienced, learned and intelligent person who, in contrast to Obama, would NEVER engage in self-adulation, who thinks he is divinely anointed. What this country really cannot stand is the continuation of Bush's follies, which Obama, NOT MCCAIN. Obama's election would really be is a third term of CLUELESS government.

You know what else was a rousing 'sucess'? The spelling in this article.

Mccain Lacks The Judgement To Lead! He Is The Definition Of Old Politics At Its Worst! Mccain Has No Ideas Of His Own And His Questionable Military Experience Does Not Qualify Him To Be President! Mccain Is Just A Crooked Politician! He Is A Liar, A Panderer, And A Flip Flopper!

surge was not a success you are not in Iraq to see. i have a family who lives there its the same mess. omg people are so dumb and stupid

Everyone who has a theory about who Obama "really is" lacks one important thing. FACTS.

I hope America will not allow this election to be won by the candidate who seems most patriotic and in tune with their values. That is how the GOP won it for Bush, the worst president this nation has ever had.

Perceived patriotism should not be more important than principled policy.

If we elect McCain, the world will know that we are short on brains and big on fear. Please do not let that happen.

How can anybody vote for McCain when he's using Karl Rove's tactics and Bush's campaign people? Haven't Americans learned anything from the last 7 years? PLEASE DO NOT FALL FOR THIS KIND OF POLITICS AGAIN!

Obama's been right all along-no Iraq then, no more Iraq now.
OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT!

Obama keeps bringing up the race card. It is really getting to be old hat. He is turning people off by it. He needs to come down a notch, instead acting like he's God's gift to mankind.

Americans think the Surge was a success because they don't understand what actually goes on in Iraq. Maybe if the average American googled the Anbar Awakening they might understand that the "Surge" has helped, but is not the only reason Iraq has gotten better.

Also we are not winning the War in Iraq. The war was lost a long time ago. There is no way to justify this as a win because the war will cost more than $1 Trillion. Removing Saddam at a cost $1 Trillion is a loss.

Oh and by the way, remember I talked a while back that my boy shouldn't worry about Penn??? Like I said, I'm following this race too! LOL!! But Ohio and Florida, I did say that senator McCain does have a chance there, how do I know?? I'm just that good guys, O.K? LOL!!

But you know what? Everything should start heating up AFTER the GOP's convention. Boy, is the action gonna start or what! I can't wait guys...

Obama keeps bringing up the race card. It is really getting to be old hat. He is turning people off by it. He needs to come a notch, instead acting like he's God's gift to mankind.

To: Sante

You are right on.

I believe that as American troop levels are reduced and redirected to Afghanistan, that insurgent forces are patiently waiting to have their day of return. Muqtada al-Sadr and his bunch have held to a cease fire in the last 6 months that have contributed to the lower casualty count and death toll on Iraqi streets. Divide and conquer; I believe this may be a strategy that al-Sadr's forces have adopted. Only time will tell.

success or not we are the reason it is so bad over there. we made it worse and we have to correct it.

Yet another poll that shows just how dumb we are.

....and let us not forget that many insurgents are being paid not to attack US troops. Is this all a carefully orchestrated song and dance to help the GOP stay in the White House? Remember how the war got Bush re-elected? They conveniently caught Saddam.

JOHN, I am glad someone else knows that, but do you ever hear about that payment in the media or from the wonderful people that invented the so call surge, If you pay me I wouldn't shoot at you either at least until that money run out, why do they think Big Mouth Alsadar is so quiet now can the people get a clue?

I'm glad it was successful but we never should have been there to begin with. Bush and his cronies forgot about Bin Laden and Afghanistan once he invaded Iraq. I'm sure his buddies have made a ton of money off this war.

McCain has been in office for 30+ years and he is a very familiar face and yet no one is excited here or overseas that he is running for president. I wonder why?
We have a choice now...The Intelligent popular man that would use his overnight world 'celebrity' status to help the USA make and renew friendships with other nations. Or the much older life-long Washington politician who says war is the answer and is part of the reason we have a deficit that will take ALL of us decades and decades to pay.
I laugh that the McCain people use popularity as a negative. If McCain were half as popular as his opponent he would not be resorting to the many ads of combining Paris Hilton and Barack in the same sentence. Why not compare Barack Obama to Angelia Jolie and Bono of U2!
The Economy is horrible,unemployment is up, and USA morale is down
No not a third time!
Obama in 08!

Sante...bull his color does not matter. If he were a white man you would probably view his "arrogance" as confidence. What a double standard we hold in this country. I for one love his demeanor and the way he carried himself. Let's face it...anyone running for President of the United States has to be arrogant because they think they are the most qualified for the position.

I am sick of hearing about the surge! We are paying these people $300 each to stop shooting each other. If you call that a success you are nuts!
Bring our people home!
Obama 08
McSame will keep them there forever

Lately, it seems that many Americans did not have enough with 8 years of Bush so many want McCain.

I still think many other Americans are well informed and will make the right choice:

Obama 2008!

I heard McCain talk on the radio. He sounds old and almost sick.
He is too old to be president. He was trembling when speaking. We could be in real trouble if we have a president who can't make it through four years.

The keyword here is "think" it is a success. There were other significant factors at play during the same time frame. Foremost being the fact that a few months before the surge some of the Iraqis decided to work against Al-Qaeda, instead of for them.

How much did an increased presence of American troops have? Well, they did go into Sadr City. What took so long to go in there is a question I would like answered. Did they wait until they had a Surge?

The Surge is what should have happened when Baghdad first fell. Not 5 years later. Don't believe what you told. You have been told that the Surge succeeded. Every morning the sun rises, and I yawn. Does my yawn cause the sun to rise? Did the Surge achieve success or was lower violence already coming?

Once Iraqis began turning the tide against Al-Qaeda, they pretty much packed up and left for Afghanistan and Iran. Did the Surge cause that to happen? It was happening before they started calling for a Surge.

9 out of 10 Americans think "success" was spelled incorrectly in this article's title.

If the surge worked so well then what is the problem leaving Iraq??? The real truth is.. the Afphgan conflict should have been the main focus all along.. the Iraq war was a lie..so do build on a lie or go to where the real problem lies in A Afghanistan .. It WAS ABOUT OIL CHILDREN!! Geeze haven't got that part yet??? How many soldiers will die, be mentally scarred and maimed for Oil interests of Cheney.. it is so wrong. GET OUT NOW

It is so weird how some polls seem to be on the pulse of America, like this one. And other polls make you think that you're either lying to us or America is just plane stupid. I am referring to that article I read that said "The Majority of Americans want off-shore drilling" When every one I talk to and listen to said that it would be ineffective, costly and dangerous to our environment, which is the reason why we are not doing it now.
But back the lecture at hand, Whoopee! the surge worked. WE SHOULD HAVE NEVER GONE THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE! WHAT HAVE WE REALLY ACCOMPLISHED! HOW ARE WE GOING TO REPLACE THE 4000 TROOPS THAT HAVE DIED.

Like John is willing for Americans to wait for the troops to come home, he is willing for us to wait for low gas prices. In fact we can wait 100 years for that too, what does he care, he just wants to be president.

This man can't even run a good presidential campaign, what makes anyone think he can run the country. He can't he just wants to talk about war, and the rest of those pesky issues can go to hell in a handbasket.

Obama 08

Maybe the surge was a success, but who cares? WE didn't need to be their in the first place.

You see guys, everything changes, especially in war. That's why either you are a Dem or most importantly, a Rep, you do gotta be careful what you say because it can make you look bad. One minute you can talk about how right you are on the surge(Reps), and the next minute you can talk about reductions(Dems) and we know both political parties have very distinct views.

You see, this is why for me personally, my boy's trip was important. I wasn't looking for boost in the polls, I was looking for what my boy can bring in the table. Hey, people are voting for what they believe, I'm voting for my convictions...

Our troops never should have been sent in!

Sante:

In the words of the Geico caveman: uhhhh, what?

CNN: Did you get an order from Israel to Make McCain win?

Your bias is very clear and you become worse than FOX news. Every body can see this
Just remember, it is for the interest of the country and Israel too to have economically stronger and better America

Stop the bias and tell the truth. We can't tolerate another 4 years of the same OLD politics

Tony, you are mighty to call McCain McBush. I think the people who write messages like that must be in the 80% of wage earners who pay about 5% of tax bill. My income levels pays 95%. Most of you live off of others.

Yes when we see success we want troops home. However, we also want them home in an honorable fashion and without any doubts that we have done our best and certainly with the knowledge that we've made the decision to leave outside of immediate presidential political presssures . When these parameters are considered, it doesn't mean we want all troops currently in Iraq back in the US within 16 months and that we are going tosend an announcement as such to those who wish us harm. Lastly, the reality and necessity in Afghanistan is that we need to continue Iraq's successes and strategies there, which means some redeployment of folks from Iraq to Afghanistan to finish the job. God bless our troops.

It's so convenient that McLame went from 100 years in Iraq to 16 months, which just happened to be the amount of time that Barack had stated. McLame is an idiot and I don't believe he has our best interest for one minute. Let him go home and retire.

@ SANTE
The constant complaint that Obama is arrogant is plain racism : Blacks who succeed are considered arrogant because in this white world, they should know their place (in other words "uppity blacks"). Obama has earned his living and his success, get used to it !

The surge was a success alone with a payment witch they will never say that, heaven't you noticed the big man that was always talking to his people ALSADAR "kill the americans" has dissapeared" strangely, if you pay me I will dissapear so the Bush Admin and McSane need to tell the truth, They will be quiet until the money run out , All the soldiers we have had over there didn't help so you telling me sending a few more brigades did the job, yea right. and I'm stupid.

PS. Go to Huffingtonpost.com and read the article by Paul Jenkins "Obama still does not know his place" wonderful article, check it out.

Of course, it was a success, as predicted by John McCain. Only The One can't climb over his gigantic ego to admit he was wrong. Bad trait in a leader. If Obama's prescription had been followed, the war would be lost. I don't give a whit about Obama's winning anything. I do care that he can't recognize when his country is winning. We have enough losers with Reid and Pelosi.

Grow up, Obama is not the scary person you paint–if you didn't like him before he was winning, you really won't like him now. Stop trying to pretend you intellectually considering Obama because you're not. I think David Duke is more your speed.

Oh, and "that guy and his GANG", will be your next president. His "gang" happens to be your fellow Americans. What gang? LOL

Great success ! How many thousands of Iraqis have been killed and continue to be killed everyday !!! Shame !

Of course it was a success. We have the best military in the world. I still don't know why we was there in the first place. Obama was right from the start. A trillion dollar war(shaking my head) That money alone would have helped the deficit that our great nation has rt now.

Obama 08/12

OBAMA= JUDGEMENT TO LEAD
OBAMA 08

McSame=NO MESSAGE,ONLY ATTACK
IT WILL NOT WORK THIS YEAR,NOT THIS ELECTION

We won the war already, Bush announced it with his "Mission Accomplished" statement. What we are doing now is an occupation. Occupations cannot be won or lost, just ended. We should pull our troops out as soon as possible.

"100 year in Iraq, no wait 16 months, what happened to Matlock? What were we talking about again?" – McConfused

Is it "the surge" that is helping (adding 30,000 troops) or the fact that we are paying 80,000 + Iraqi insurgents not to shoot at us or bomb us? That's right, it's well documented that we're paying our enemies $10/day/man to stand guard at check points and not to turn on us. In my opinion, paying off our enemies is probably having a much bigger (though temporary) effect than the much vaunted "surge"!

The surge is a temporary solution. Those soldiers can't stay there forever, as John McInsane says. So how does that win the war. I think the surge solves part of the problem, but at the end of the day, we still have a problem–Al Quaeda in Afghanistan.

Obama 08

Blah, blah, blah. The surge this, the surge that. Whether it worked or not we should NOT be there in the first place. What difference does it make how we clean up our mess?

IT IS TIME TO LEAVE YESTERDAY!

I think McCain knows what he is talking about. He will bring the troops
home, but when it is safe for everyone. Obama has no clue of what
should or should not be done. Just because he tours overseas like
a Rock Star for PR reasons only, that does not make him an authority
.

WAKE UP AMERICA!

If you want the troops home you had better not elect McCain (McBush)

I have a niece and nephew in the Marines and both JUST finished training. They are already talking about possibly sending my niece to Iraq in September after only 1-month of training in communications.

Count on at least four more years of troops being slaughtered and injured for life if McCain becomes the next President.

Meanwhile, Obama thinks the surge and American Forces are failures, and wants to send the troops to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Obama is a bigger warmonger than McCain could ever pretend to be.

WAKE UP AMERICA!

If you want the troops home you had better not elect McCain (McBush)

I have a niece and nephew in the Marines and both JUST finished training. They are already talking about possibly sending my niece to Iraq in September after only 1-month of training in communications.

Count on at least foru more years of troops being slaughtered and injured for life if McCain becomes the next President.

What is the timetable for our troops to leave Germany and Japan ?

they should have never been sent to iraq.

Who cares????

ABOUT OBAMA:

1. Everybody who is NOT a snob senses that something is not exactly O.K. with that so called "New Politician".
I see him like my doughier: tells me exactly what I would like to hear.

I think that Guy and his gang had studied the social behaviour in USA long before had started the elections and they simply manipulate us very effectively!
Simply: DO NOT TRUST HIM!!!!

2. No offence, but am I correct that OBAMA is very much supported and loved by HOMOSEXUALS?

/ Not because I do not respect them as human beings/

3. His color is NOT my concern but his attitude : HE IS ARROGANT!
e.g. Is it appropriate a future President to chew a gum walking as a peacock at front of the cameras?

4. If he is "sooo gifted" and almost genius, what he had done for 45 years before the beginning of that election?