General Sanchez’s nightmare isn’t about the war, but rather the incompetent strategic leadership that includes Capitol Hill.

There has been a glaring, unfortunate, display of incompetent strategic leadership within our national leaders. As a Japanese proverb says, “action without vision is a nightmare” there is no question that America is living A nightmare with no end in sight.

Since 2003, the politics of war have been characterized by partisanship as the republican and democratic parties struggled for power in washington. National efforts to date have been corrupted by partisan politics that have prevented us from devising effective, executable, supportable solutions. At times, these partisan struggles have led to political decisions that endangered the lives of our sons and daughters on the battlefield. The unmistakable message was that political power had greater priority than our national security objectives. Overcoming this strategic failure is the first step toward achieving victory in Iraq – without bipartisan cooperation we are doomed to fail. There is nothing going on today in Washington that would give us hope.

- General Sanchez

Funny how the AP made it sound different.

All you have to do is look at the saga of Green Helmet and the Reuters fauxtography the Al Dura film and the reporting of TNR by Scott Beauchamp.

Disinformation by the bad guys should be an expected thing, that is why skepticism is a healthy attitude to make the buyer beware. 

I think he is blaming, but himself.

And I also think there is some truth in much of what he says, but then again he does not and did not offer realistic alternatives to the policy in place…Patreaus did and I think that is what makes him the most bitter.

But he is right in that the soldiers should have been jerked around by the politicians..left and right.

He points out well the impact of the media and in many cases their pre conceived message and notions of how they wished to frame the issue.

Abu G.  , Haditha , now black water along with questionable stringers all contribute.

Plus there is a real need for operational security that precludes release of some information due to the impact it could have on planning for future operations and the desire to leave the bad guys blind and dumb.

You can’t put live cameras in the war room to show all the tactical displays as the battlefield unfolds. 

The left is buying into the spin above suggested prior to my post.

As Powerline proffers, it will be interesting to see the contortions the left will have to go through to offer up Sanchez as their latest demi god and square that with their posturing on Abu  Gharib.

If you read their commentary it is cherry picked out of context stuff only emphasizing his criticism of some of the early tactics which is a fair point of debate in the marketplace of ideas. 

And while I understand it’s hard to read his very widespread “blame”, may I tell you what I “heard” in his speech?

He is placing the lack of success upon us all… negligent, irresponsible western media, partisan sniping of citizens and Congress alike, inept military planning that wasn’t corrected adequately as time marched on, plus the Congressional inability to fund and deliver what the troops need without bickering and long delays.

By your original leap to conclusion without reading his speech, he has proven his point. The media’s irresponsible reporting doesn’t help a nation who has a ho-hum attitude about a distant war.

But when citizens – who should know that the media has an agenda – doesn’t take advantage of reading the direct links to his words and instead takes the media headlines and summaries as “truth”, we are also to blame.

Now the left cut and paste the juicy parts that fit their agenda. The right is on the quest to destroy his credibility and service. Again, his point is being proven as correct.

For myself, I think most of his assessments are right on, and I take no personal ‘tude about it all. Mistakes are made in every war. But they are most definitely easier to correct when everyone is on the same page – a quest for success. And it is here that our problems lie.

I think we would be wise to consider his formula for success… which mandates all partisan sniping for political gain must stop. This nation… elected elite and citizens… must come up with a plan for success that we can all back.

Whether that’s possible in this environment filled with hate, dunno. But our very survival may depend upon it.

(2007-10-13) — Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who generated headlines this week by calling the Iraq war “a nightmare with no end in sight,” today released a list of the “least newsworthy remarks” from that same speech t…

1) Sanchez also criticized the media, which no one seems to be reporting, as if the incompetence of the media led to more than 3,800 dead Americans

2) Sanchez is bitter for being forced out because of Abu Ghraib