When last we left the Bush administration’s so-called benchmarks for strategic progress in Iraq — that is, the political progress that military success allows — they weren’t being met, and the White House didn’t care. Now that the year’s almost over and the administration is beginning to bring the “surge” troops home, it’s worth asking: what happened to the benchmarks? The New York Times reports that the administration has quietly given up on them, preferring nebulous goals for which it’s easier to claim success.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=179310