In particular, [Senator] Biden declared repeatedly that his own assertion that only about 4,000 Iraqi troops had been effectively trained - Rice said the number was 120,000 - had been based on confidential discussions with military commanders in Iraq.
Is criticism of our war effort now reduced to arguing over the level of training that we've given the Iraqi troops? Just what standard of training is the opposition holding as necessary to fight? Maybe we can bo back and impeach President Lincoln if training standards are the measure. If it is modern American standards, then no Iraqi unit is going to match that level any decade soon. Nobody is claiming that 120,000 Iraqis are trained to American standards. And I assure you, that group of 4,000 is not trained anywhere near American standards either.
The Iraqi security units have had training and now the important thing is to get them in the field to gain experience in fighting the insurgents.
I dare say that by the standards being set for training our side, there are no trained Baathists or jihadis at all.
Look, I want honest criticism. I want questions based on a shared desire to win. I don't want cheerleading that ignores real problems. But the opposition makes it difficult to even take their questions seriously.
