Clearly, the unending killing of more innocent civilians in Iraq can only serve as a grim reminder of how much excellent progress is being made due to the “surge”:

- BAGHDAD – The bodies of 33 people were found abandoned in different districts of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said. They had all been shot.

- BAGHDAD – Police found 29 bodies on the streets of Baghdad on Wednesday. Most of the victims had been shot dead.

- RAMADI – A suicide car bomber killed five policemen and wounded 13 other officers in Ramadi, 110 km (68 miles) west of Baghdad, police said.

- BAQUBA – Two children and three women were killed and eight other people were wounded when a mortar exploded in a residential area of Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, the Ministry of the Interior said.

Now all that’s needed is another six months of time and the President Bush implementing a “Plan B” that he said we’d never need due to the certainty he had the “surge” would work. Not that the Bush administration has a Plan B mind you, but that’s not the point. The point is, as the administration continues to point out, the more innocent people that die, the better things are going.

This winter, when the “surge” idea will have been a year old and we’ll be six months past the point in time originally predicted to yield an overwhelmingly positive outcome, people should be reminded that the plan the Democratic party had was to end the war in Iraq, not escalate it.

Quick tip for major news organizations: when there’s good evidence of a major infraction of the law regarding the retention and destruction of President records, it’s not “skirting” the law.

It’s breaking the law, and please get past the idea of presenting both sides of the story when one of them – that it’s all “PARTISAN POLITICS!” according to Republicans – is clearly just trying to confuse the issue with obviously inaccurate spin.

The Bush Administration has knowingly and improperly used Republican National Committee and Bush-Cheney 2004 campaign e-mail accounts for official government business and then erased most of the records, which is a serious breach of the law. Not only that, there is evidence that then White House counsel and current Attorney General Alberto Gonzales knew there were laws were being broken and did nothing.

Just watch as the right wing weblogs and a certain columnist of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel try to spin this one as “PARTISAN POLITICS!!!”, instead of what it really could be: one of the most serious infractions of the public trust in a generation.

The top U.S. commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, said yesterday that conditions in that country will not improve enough by September to justify a reduction of military forces. The Washington Post has the whole story, but the bottom line is that no matter what the President, the Generals, or anyone else said last winter when this “surge” plan was floated about “now we just need another 6 months!”, it’s not going to pan out.

Every 6 months comes another promise of progress in the next 6 months, and the President kicks the can of responsibility or accountability down the road once again. As I’ve said before, baring some huge Republican revolt in Congress, President Bush is going to finish out his term and pass this mess onto the next President, just like he’s passed on the problems he’s created to someone else throughout his life.

Frequent readers will no doubt recall over the last year or so I and other Wisconsin bloggers have frequently corrected and pointed out the obvious inaccuracies of “conservative columnist” Patrick McIlheran of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Today, I present the closing argument against McIlheran and his ridiculous ability to say and write “opinion” without any regard for logic, research, or reality. All provided by the man himself:

Sen. Joe Lieberman, one of the few liberals not ready to throw the war to al-Qaida, writes in Wall Street Journal about his latest trip to Iraq… – Patrick McIlheran”

Joe Lieberman. “Independent” Senator and defender of all things Bush. The man who thumbed his nose at the democratic process and the Democratic party. The man who would caucus with Republicans but knows Democrats will only extend their majority in the Senate in 2008.

The Liberal.

It’s this kind of remarkable insight and ability to turn the most unrealistic argument into “truth” if it supports whatever asinine point it is you’re trying to get across that gets you a thrice weekly column for a major American newspaper.

Isn’t it amazing the number of “tough on crime” conservatives that all the sudden seem to have no problem with lying to federal officials?

And isn’t it interesting that to them the “Stop snitchin” campaign is a blight on the urban community that requires immediate condemnation from community leaders? You’ve heard them for years on T.V., radio, and on their weblogs denounce such behavior that hinders criminal investigations and calling for it’s end.

Yet a convicted felon like Scooter Libby should not only be pardoned, but candle light vigils should be held in his honor until he’s freed. Another lesson in conservative logic.

More frivolity from your liberal media: CNN and MSNBC both have been running live “BREAKING NEWS” coverage of Paris Hilton’s release from jail for most of the morning.

Never mind the 3,500th member of the US military was killed in Iraq, or that 26 troops have died already in the first 6 days of June, including another from Wisconsin.

Now, back to more “expert analysts” cracking jokes about how to incorporate ankle bracelets into the wardrobes of people who don’t matter.