A couple of things.

First of all, we won. The insurgents were beaten back, democracy was established, and the future is brighter than ever before for the Iraq people. It was a long, hard slog and there were times when the outcome was questionable. But in the end, we triumphed.

Second, we owe a debt of gratitude — one we can never fully repay — to those who sacrificed and even lost their lives during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Every one of our veterans and lost children are heroes to be honored and admired by future generations.

All of that said, we’re involved in politics and there are political considerations here.

Expect Obama to move rapidly to accept credit — credit the media will voluntarily grant — for victory and withdrawal. The president is embroiled in controversy (the Ground Zero mosque) and his plans are failing spectacularly (the economy). He’s willing to rewrite history to suit his political needs.

Never mind that Obama said the surge would make things worse. Never mind that he called for withdrawal when leaving would have meant defeat for the United States. Never mind that Bush was actually the one responsible for negotiating the withdrawal timeline, after success had been achieved, culminating in the status of forces agreement.

Never mind all of that. Obama will take credit for victory and timely withdrawal. And the media will, for the most part, gladly bolster his narrative by coincidentally forgetting about those soundbites from 2006-2008. It will be up to Republicans to dig through the archive to remind people that Obama wanted to leave in defeat.