-Two critics of Bush's recent handling of Iraq, Michael O'Hanlon and Kenneth Pollack, both of the Brookings Institution, penned an op-ed opinion piece in The New York Times suggesting after a visit that ``
we are finally getting somewhere in Iraq, at least in military terms.'' They recommended Congress sustain the current troop buildup ``at least into 2008.''
-Leading anti-war Democrat Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania predicted that U.S. commanders will begin drawing down troop levels early next year and that Congress can be more flexible in setting a fixed deadline for ending the U.S. occupation.
-Polls suggest that Bush has had some degree of success in linking Islamic militants in Iraq with the al-Qaida terrorist movement.
``The administration is aggressively engaged in shifting (public) attitudes. And our side has been less aggressive than it needs to be,'' said Democratic pollster Celinda Lake. ``The administration has been making inroads on their Iraqi argument, particularly linking it to terrorism.''
After sliding to just 28 percent in June, within range of an all-time low, Bush's job approval rating on handling Iraq rose slightly to 31 percent in July, according to AP-Ipsos polling. And a recent CBS/NYT poll showed an increase in the percentage of Americans who think the U.S. did the right thing in going to war with Iraq, up to 42 percent from 35 percent in May.
``I don't claim our recommendation to keep surging into 2008 is a no-brainer. That can be debated. But I think people's opinions need to catch up with the battlefield facts,'' O'Hanlon said in an interview.
The op-ed piece he wrote with Pollack has been widely circulated by war supporters but denounced by many war critics. ``As long as people start to get a sense that what's happening on the battlefield is different and better than what it was, then I feel like we've made our contribution,'' said O'Hanlon.
