Shifting Sands: Couric Sees Iraq Progress

by phrolen | September 5, 2007 at 06:47 am

507 views | 6 Recommendations | 9 comments

NowPublic contributor phrolen is a veteran of Operation Iraqi
Freedom and Joint Taskforce Katrina. His commentary is based on actual
experience.

Plauged with historically low Neilsen ratings, officials at CBS decided to act bold last week and dispatched their top anchor, host of CBS Evening News Katie Couric, to the warzone in Iraq for a first hand look. Couric replaced news legend Dan Rather as the show's host in 2005 after Rather was forced into retirement after a forged documents scandal regarding the national guard records of President George W.Bush during the 2004 presidential elections. Since Courics installment as chief anchor of the once iconic evening news show, ratings have slipped to the lowest point in the shows history and CBS producers have struggled to find a new winning formula. "My God they're trying to kill her off" joked one late night TV comic in an apparent reference to Couric's lofty contract with CBS, along with the dangers of the Iraq warzone. Couric, however, has remained upbeat and during her recent trip to Iraq's once volitile Anbar provinge she reported seeing "Real Progress" on the ground.

"We hear so much about things going bad, but real progress has been made here in terms of security and stability." exclaimed Couric in her tacit endorsment of the progress of recent "Surge operations." "I mean obviously, infrastructure problems around, but Sunnis and U.S. forces are working together. They banded together because they had a common enemy: Al Qaeda." "The spike in police has really been significant. The incidents in Iraq have really gone down." Couric's comments are a first for major, mainstream, network anchors who have persisted in universally pessimistic appraisals of the Iraqi situation since the wars onset. Her remarks also come just on the eve of American Iraq Commander Gen. David H. Petraeus' much anticipated report to congress on the progress of this years "Surge" campaign. While the generals report is expected to show mixed results on military and political fronts, sources close to the report indicate that it will indicate enough of a positive change to possible prompt redeployment of combat forces out of the war theatre as early as march.

(CBS) BAGHDAD, Iraq One week before Gen. David Petraeus is expected to give his report on U.S. progress in Iraq, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric says she has already seen dramatic improvements in the country.

"We hear so much about things going bad, but real progress has been made there in terms of security and stability," Couric said Tuesday. "I mean, obviously, infrastructure problems abound, but Sunnis and U.S. forces are working together. They banded together because they had a common enemy: al Qaeda."

Couric traveled to the city of Fallujah in Anbar province, which U.S. forces entered in April 2003 and again in November 2004. That is the same city where, in house-to-house fighting, American forces uncovered nearly two-dozen torture chambers.

"We found numerous houses, also, where people were just chained to a wall for extended periods of time," U.S. military intelligence officer Major Jim West said back on Nov. 22, 2004.

"The face of Satan was here in Fallujah, and I'm absolutely convinced that that was true," said Marine Lt. Col. Gareth Brandl.

It is also the city where four American military contractors were set on fire, mutilated and hanged from a bridge by insurgents.

Now Fallujah is "considered a real role model of something working right in Iraq," Couric said.

"The spike in police has really been significant," Couric said. "The incidents in Iraq have gone down dramatically."

Security and stability have improved in Iraq, but basic services remain in disrepair.

"I think everyone I talk to agrees that restoring basic services is really an imperative step in bringing stability and some kind of sense of society to Iraq," Couric said.

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gmony714

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 06:58 on September 5th, 2007

phrolen, good story, the second war here at home will ramp up soon as Dems counter looming report on the surge.

SthPacific

at 07:40 on September 5th, 2007

DAVID WALKER, CONGRESSIONAL GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE: In summary,
as of August 30, 2007, the Iraqi Government had met three, partially
met four, and not met 11 of 18 legislative, security and economic
benchmarks.

If it were a high school report card the parents might be
calling the principal. But the General Accounting Office is Congress's
non-partisan investigational arm and the stakes are much higher.

DAVID WALKER: Overall, key legislation has not been passed,
violence remains high and it is unclear whether the Iraqi Government
will spend the $10 billion in reconstruction funds it has allocated.

The GAO report says the number of daily attacks on civilian
populations was consistent between February and July this year, despite
the Bush Administration's 30,000-strong troop surge. That sounds very
different to what the US commander, David Petraeus, is saying.

GENERAL DAVID PETRAEUS, COMMANDER MULTI-NATIONAL FORCE: 8 of
the past 11 weeks have seen the number of incidents, the number of
attacks, come down to the point that they reached a level that's about
the lowest in well over a year.

And as was seen yesterday when George Bush flew into Iraq
before APEC it is the general who shakes the President's hand and who
next week will deliver his report. Today, when asked if a draw-down of
troops would be under way by March next year, the perennially
optimistic commander replied

DAVID PETRAEUS: Wait for the recommendations please, but again, your calculations are about right.

But this week marks the beginning of the American political
season and nobody is waiting to say their piece. From Democrat senators

SENATOR HARRY REID, SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: The President can't
hide behind the generals. This is his war. He is responsible for the
mistakes and the missteps that leave our troops mired in civil war with
no end in sight.

..to deeply conservative analysts.

NORM ORNSTEIN, POLITICAL SCIENTIST, AMERICAN ENTERPRISE
INSTITUTE: Iraq, to overuse the cliche, is truly the 8 million-pound
gorilla in the room and it will dominate everything else.

phrolen

at 13:45 on September 5th, 2007

Yes, Sth Pacific, that is all true, Thank you your your continued contributions to NP. After all that is said however, it in no way takes away from the fact that Katie Couric said this. I t seemed you were under the presumption that I was trying to propogate a point of view behind her findings. The NEWS here is, the fact that she, of all people is saying such a thing.

SthPacific

at 11:04 on September 6th, 2007

Not at all phrolen this is what crowd power is about is it not ? Multiple sources conflicting reports etc etc What would be the point of it otherwise.

CitizenX

at 08:02 on September 5th, 2007

Good to know that the media is still willing to assist bush in his propaganda efforts. I wondered why she made the trip at this time. The truth needs to be buried and she is doing her part.

CitizenX

at 08:03 on September 5th, 2007

Good to know that the media is still willing to assist bush in his propaganda efforts. I wondered why she made the trip at this time. The truth needs to be buried and she is doing her part.

crissy333

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 08:10 on September 5th, 2007

phrolen, I like this story. It's good stuff. those who claim the media has not been critical of the Iraq war are either not reading the press or not being honest. Phrolen good job, God bless our troops.