McCain Flubs on Iraq ... Again

In an interview with CBS' Katie Couric last night, John McCain claimed that the surge provided the necessary space for the Anbar awakening to occur, and aided the calming of tensions in the area. Couric asked John McCain to respond to Senator Barack Obama who argued that the security increased even without the surge:

McCain: I don't know how you respond to something that is as-- such a false depiction of what actually happened. Colonel McFarlane [phonetic] was contacted by one of the major Sunni sheiks. Because of the surge we were able to go out and protect that sheik and others. And it began the Anbar awakening. I mean, that's just a matter of history. Thanks to General Petraeus, our leadership, and the sacrifice of brave young Americans. I mean, to deny that their sacrifice didn't make possible the success of the surge in Iraq, I think, does a great disservice to young men and women who are serving and have sacrificed.

But, as Ilan Goldenberg noted, the Anbar awakening began September 2006 -- several months before the surge was even announced the following January.

Reports the AP:

In March 2007, before the first of the additional troops began arriving in Iraq, Col. John W. Charlton, the American commander responsible for Ramadi, a city in Anbar province, said the newly friendly sheiks, combined with an aggressive counterinsurgency strategy and the presence of thousands of new Sunni police on the streets, had helped cut attacks in the city by half in recent months.

John McCain, the self-described foreign policy expert. Can you imagine how bad he would be on something he admits he doesn't know what he's talking about, say, the economy?

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