To achieve this, the president-elect, his national security team and all of us in Congress should seek the counsel of Gen. David Petraeus, the head of U.S. Central Command, and Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of coalition forces in Iraq. Gen. Odierno [blah blah hero of the air strikes surge] is the person whose judgment should matter most in determining how fast and how deep a drawdown can be ordered responsibly.

Based on our observations and consultations in theGreen Zone Baghdad, we are optimistic that President-elect Obama will be able to fulfill a major step of his plan for withdrawal next year by redeploying U.S. combat forces from Iraq's cities while maintaining a residual force to train and mentor our Iraqi allies. By allowing a greater number of forces to remain in Iraq in the short term, we will be able to set the conditions for much deeper troop cuts thereafter.

They also think Bush should appoint a replacement for Ambassador Crocker pronto – but of course, Obama can consult:

As we reduce the number of combat forces in Iraq, our national interests there will depend to an increasing degree on the skill of our diplomacy. That is why we urge the outgoing Bush administration to act quickly, and in coordination with the incoming Obama administration, to put in place an appropriate successor to Ambassador Ryan Crocker, who has announced his intention to leave his critical post in Baghdad early in the new year.

And they suggest that rather than focus on that “unfortunate” “shoe-throwing incident,” we remember:

the remarkable consensus that exists among Iraq's democratically elected leaders about building a long-term partnership with the United States.

Funny thing about puppets, they have a remarkable tendency to tell you what you want to hear.

While our Blue America czar Howie Klein is away, I thought we could surprise him with a thank you post for all he has done over the last few years.

Howie and our other Blue Am folks have organized us to nominate, publicize, and support dozens of progressive candidates. Many of these outstanding candidates are now serving in the U.S. Congress, including some who lost in 2006 but came roaring back in 2008, and others we think can win in 2010.

Look at the landscape a month from now: Rep. Donna Edwards - Rep. Larry Kissell - Labor Secretary Hilda Solis - Senator Jeff Merkley - Rep. Alan Grayson - Rep. John Hall - Rep. Martin Heinrich - Rep. Tom Perriello - a long list of Blue Am candidates who weren't given much of a chance til a small group of visionary people came along and insisted.

Even the races we lost produced fruit, by showing that we could provide instant national publicity for progressive candidates.  And our support for good folks in unlikely races has helped interest local people get organized to make things better in the future.  

We electrified the Alaska Democratic Party in 2005-2006 by pouring in money and attention when the local folks thought they didn't have much of a chance, and Senator-elect Begich is the beneficiary this year.

This year's elections were so dominated by the presidential run that we might not have taken the time to reflect on just how far we've come with state and local races.  And this has taken leadership and commitment, so much work behind the scenes.

Join me in thanking Howie and the Blue Am team for all they have done! 

If you need any more proof that the Republican attempt to break the UAW a week ago Thursday was really just a political stunt, read this article. In it, Republican after Republican attacks Bush for providing relief to the auto industry. That includes four of the Republican Senators who--Bob Corker has assured us--would have supported his "compromise" deal from last Thursday:

John McCain:

John McCain is leading the way, saying it is “unacceptable that we would leave the American taxpayer with a tab of tens of billions of dollars while failing to receive any serious concessions from the industry.”

John Kyl:

“I’m very disappointed,” said Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.). “The president justified his action with a false choice: it’s either this plan or abrupt liquidation of the companies. The White House seems to think that the industry didn’t have time to deal with the problem or prepare for an orderly bankruptcy, which is false.”

Judd Gregg:

“These funds were not authorized by Congress for non-financial companies in distress,” Gregg said, “but were to be used to restore liquidity and stability in the overall financial system of the country and to help prevent fundamental systemic risks in the global marketplace.”

Mitch McConnell:

“I have strong objections to the use of Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) funds for industry specific bailouts. And I do not support this action,” McConnell said. “But since the administration has chosen to use these funds to aid the automakers, it is important that the date-specific requirements on all the stakeholders be enforced.”