Obama: In Military Matters, I'm Smarter than Gen. Petraeus!

Speaking to reporters in Dayton Ohio today, Barack Obama lambasted President Bush and Sen. John McCain, saying "what President Bush and Senator McCain don't understand is that the central front in the war on terror is not in Iraq, and it never was... Senator McCain will continue the overwhelming focus on Iraq... It's time to change our foreign policy..." - Source - AFP

Ironically, Gen. David H. Petraeus, the departing commander of U.S. troops in Iraq, said just the opposite today.

From the Washington Post:

Iraq remains "the central front" for al-Qaeda and other extremist organizations, Gen. David H. Petraeus, the departing commander of U.S. troops in Iraq, said in an interview Tuesday.

Petraeus acknowledged that extremist violence is rising in Afghanistan and Pakistan, battlegrounds he will soon oversee as the next head of the U.S. military Central Command, but said "it is still assessed that Iraq is still viewed as the central front, if you will, for al-Qaeda and extremism of that flavor."...

He said al-Qaeda leaders remain keenly interested in keeping a foothold in Iraq because of its proximity to Gulf states where they have been shunned in recent years. ..

When extra troops arrived in Iraq last spring, "the level of violence was horrific," Petraeus said. "The fact was that the situation was out of out control." ...

Petraeus said the extra troops and well-coordinated, intelligence-driven operations allowed U.S. troops to weaken Sunni and Shiite extremists and diminish their stature in the eyes of Iraqis...

He said recent intelligence reports suggest that Iranian-backed Shiite fighters who left the country in recent months to avoid a military confrontation with U.S. and Iraqi forces are considering returning to Iraq.

That's right, "they're considering returning to Iraq", if and when Barack Obama becomes President.....