Accidental Blogger

More US troops have died this year in Afghanistan than in Iraq, the first year starting 2003 that's been true. Obviously that fact reflects both that the US Iraq toll has been coming down since 2007 (for reasons of surge or Anbar Awakening or whatever) and that Afghanistan seems to get more horrible each year. I suspect each of those things is going to give a certain Mr. McCain renewed clout in the coming weeks/months as these calls for increased troop deployment in Afghanistan play out. Even last year Obama and the Democrats basically conceded the rhetorical battle over the surge to the Republicans, to the point that I think McCain managed to hold Obama to a virtual tie at least on the Iraq war.