Both major party presidential candidates have lauded the surge strategy as a great success despite mounting evidence that sectarian cleansing, not the surge, was responsible for the drop in violence. Republican nominee John McCain has remained hawkish on the war from the start, though Democratic nominee Barrack Obama has several times stated his intent to withdraw forces from Iraq if elected.

However, Senator Obama’s comment earlier this month that “the surge succeeded beyond our wildest dreams,” and increasing insistence that he will seek guidance from military leaders on the pullout have left the differences between the two candidates less clear. And with Afghanistan taking up an increasing amount of the campaigns’ focus it seems unlikely that further clarification is immediately forthcoming.

Secretary Gates also predicted increases in the number of troops in Afghanistan next year. He says that failure in either nation “would be a disastrous blow to our credibility.” But with Gen. Petraeus doubting victory in Iraq and Admiral Mullen warning that the strategy in Afghanistan isn’t succeeding either, staving off failure in either, let alone both, an enormous challenge.