Joe Pitts: “over the break I had the opportunity to travel to Iraq to meet with our troops and military commanders on the ground…”

“over the break I had the opportunity to travel to Iraq to meet with our troops and military commanders on the ground there. Two observations: the morale of our troops is high, and the surge is working. General Petraeus has crafted a highly sophisticated counterinsurgency strategy that has put the terrorists on the defensive and brought some level of security to many Iraqi communities where there had been none before. Now I know it's hard to admit when you are wrong, but there are many in this Chamber who came to this floor and opposed the surge saying it would be a failure. Well, it hasn't been. It has been a success. In fact, even the United Nations is recognizing the success of the Petraeus strategy. The U.N.'s top envoy in Iraq acknowledged the improvements in security and even tentative steps towards national reconciliation this week. Even for the war's opponents, it is now time to admit the success of the surge strategy in Iraq. But, instead of honoring the great work of our troops, all I hear is silence.”