Over the summer, the administration mobilized conservative members of Congress, politically-motivated members of the military leadership, “and other right-wing allies to spin the facts on the ground and create a false impression of progress in Iraq.” The campaign culminates next week when the Bush administration will “use Gen David Petraeus’s testimony before Congress…to claim that escalation [Iraq] is working.”

BodyPolitik has compiled a list of indicators demonstrating that — contrary to the President’s overtures — escalation in Iraq has failed to produce the necessary conditions for reconciliation in Iraq:

SECTARIAN KILLINGS ARE RISING

“[T]he death toll from sectarian attacks around the country is running nearly double the pace from a year ago.” [AP, 8/25/07]

ESCALATION IS BREAKING OUR MILITARY

After having dinner with Gen. David Patreus, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) reports that the general will express his concern that the “troops were being pushed to the limit.” [Chicago Tribune, 8/30/07]

Ret. Maj. Gen. John Batiste wrote in an op-ed last week, “The war in Iraq is breaking our fine Army and Marine Corps, and we are perilously close to doing damage that will take more than a decade to fix.” [ThinkProgress, 8/22/07]

NO POLITICAL RECONCILIATION

The Iraqi Government will become more precarious over the next six to 12 months because of criticism by other members of the major Shia coalition, Grand Ayatollah Sistani, and other Sunni and Kurdish parties. [NIE, 8/23/07]

Read the full list of indicators »

The American people must stand up against the administration’s attempts to “water down” intelligence assessments, and pressure Congress to reverse course in Iraq. Please contact Congress and ask them to bring our troops home. You can find contact information for your Representatives HERE and for your Senators HERE.