The Bush Legacy in 2 pictures ( and a few words)

From this:

to this:

In the midst of Mumbai, Big 3 bailouts, a governor nabbed by the Feds, and all the rest, a big thank you to Charles Krauthammer for reminding us about Iraq. With a strategic and defense agreement in hand, Mr. Bush has replaced a cruel, regionally destabilizing dictatorship willing to play patty-cake with any (well, maybe not Iran) anti-American entity, to a potentially major ally in a critical part of the world. Now, it ain't over till' its over, but no one else has attacked this country since 9/11. The government in Iraq is still somewhat wobbly, but taking steps. Its defense and police forces are standing strong. Iran and its Iraqi client the Sadrists, have been marginalized by a ballot box (backed by our outstanding military). They're good enough, they're smart enough, and doggone it, the kids in that picture like our folks in uniform, and by extention, us. Who would have expected any of this two years ago? Who could have imagined it 7 years ago?

As with any strategic undertaking that requires military action, the process is fraught with peril and is often painted with the blood and sacrifice of many of our men and women, and innocents as well. Consequently, bad intelligence, bad strategy, and bad people can tip the balance toward failure. We've come dangerously close due to all three factors, but here we are, on the cusp of success. As much as we can rightfully blame Mr. Bush for all the bad things that have happened in the prosecution of this war, we must place credit where it is due. I hope Mr. Obama realizes what kind of gift he's getting from Mr. Bush. Its way more than the keys to the Whitehouse, although the disapproval ratings for what Mr. Bush had to do pretty much handed them to the Agent of Change. Its the heavy lifting Mr. Bush did to leave his successor with a huge, tough, gristled hunk of meat taken off the President Elect's plate.