From Gary Bauer's Newsletter:
Al Qaeda In Crisis?
Documents now in the possession of U.S. military forces strongly suggest that the Al Qaeda terrorist organization in Iraq is on the verge of collapse. According to a published translation, a letter seized by U.S. troops in November and written by an Al Qaeda operative in Al Anbar province states, “We lost cities and afterward, villages… We find ourselves in a wasteland desert.” The author of the 39-page letter goes on to say that the success of U.S. forces and allied Sunni tribes in Al Anbar province has “created panic, fear and an unwillingness to fight” on the part of the terrorists and that major elements of the organization are near “total collapse.” But wait, there’s more.
A 16-page diary, written by a self-described Al Qaeda sector leader, seized north of Baghdad in October, contained this entry about his fellow thugs: “We were mistreated, cheated and betrayed by some of our brothers. Those people were nothing but hypocrites, liars and traitors and were waiting for the right moment to switch sides with whoever pays them most.” He noted that at one time 600 fighters were under his command, but he now has fewer than 20 committed jihadists remaining.
Al Qaeda is not yet defeated, but, my friends, this is good news, and more confirmation that the strategy ordered by President Bush and implemented by General David Petraeus is working. Our enemy is on the ropes, and this would be the worst possible time to let our guard down or let up in the fight. We have been reminded in recent days of the evil we are fighting. This enemy is so desperate they are now resorting to using mentally disabled women as suicide bombers. They are kidnapping Iraqi children and holding them for ransom in order raise money.
Unbelievably, however, leading Washington politicians are saying yet again, in spite of all the evidence, that the surge is a “failure.” They would turn Iraq, and any hope for a stable Middle East, over to our enemies, only to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Our allies – and our enemies – are watching to see if America will persevere until victory in a long and difficult fight, or if we will “cut and run,” as bin Laden believes we will. I want our brave men and women to come home as soon as possible, but I want them to come home with victory and honor, so that future generations may live in peace and prosperity.