Kevin Drum punks himself

By swallowing whole hog the spinmeistering by Peter Mansoor, Gen. David Petraeus’ former executive officer that, while other things beyond “the surge” may narrowly have contributed to “more success” in Iraq in 2007-08, it really was the surge.

Here’s Kevin, all sweetness and light:

Pro-war conservatives (have) … always had a much better argument to make (about the surge), one that Mansoor comes close to making here. …

The security situation in Iraq was on the cusp of something potentially dramatic, and it was possible that a small nudge might make an outsized difference. The surge was that nudge. …

It sure seems like both the most plausible and the most persuasive argument in favor of the surge — one that I'm not at all sure I'd reject out of hand.

The surge was a “nudge”? First, the various surge backers would n never describe as just a nudge.

Second, Mansoor himself rejects Drum’s idea while also pulling the McCain trick of redefining the surge:

To realize how misleading these assertions are, one must understand that the “surge” was more than an infusion of reinforcements into Iraq.

Finally, Mansoor's column ignores the ephemeral nature of any surge “success.”

And THAT’s what the neocons and just plain cons don't want to discuss.

In the middle of August doldrums, we have a clear winner for Kevin Drum’s worst post of the week, already on a Monday!