Criticism Of McClatchy Surge Story Sparks Online Response
"Pentagon officials and the White House had predicted that U.S.
casualties would rise, especially since the U.S. forces had launched major
offensives in Diyala province, north of Baghdad, and Babil province, to the
south," the response said. "One of the most recent restatements of that premise
came in the White House's July 12 assessment of progress in Iraq on Pages 3 and
4.
"So what happened?" Seibel wrote. "Not what had been predicted. U.S.
deaths caused by enemy action peaked at 120 in May, before the surge reached
full strength or Operation Phantom Thunder was launched. Combat casualties then fell consistently for the next three months, reaching a low of 56 in August.
That's the lowest number of combat casualties all year. You have to go back to
July 2006 to find combat casualties at that level."
And liberals are po'd, but which way?
