Petraeus' Successor Has Mixed Record

(NEWSER) - A new book on the surge in Iraq could offer lessons to the Obama administration about Afghanistan, Dexter Filkins writes in the New Republic. Thomas E. Ricks’ The Gamble details the success of a small band of contrarian US generals, led by David Petraeus, in turning around the war. But “what Petraeus and the other generals have ensured, by staving off defeat, is a longer war,” Filkins writes. Could that be the fate of Afghanistan? More»

Disaffected voters look to military for credibility, inspiration: Toby Harnden

(NEWSER) - The American political parties are in shambles, and in the credibility gap that plagues voters and candidates alike, a dark horse is emerging: David Petraeus. The head of Central Command evokes Dwight Eisenhower, because not since Ike's heyday "have the chances of a military man winning the White House been more propitious," writes Toby Harnden, a Brit who serves as the Telegraph 's US editor. More»

Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno to take commander's place

(NEWSER) - Gen. David Petraeus will step down as the top US commander in Iraq on Sept. 16, handing the reins to Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, the No. 2 commander there until recently, Reuters reports. Petraeus, who led the troop surge that ushered in a major decline in Iraq violence, will become head of Central Command, which oversees a region from Kenya to Kazakhstan. More»

Petraeus now Middle East chief; Odierno takes over in Baghdad

(AP) - The Senate today confirmed Gen. David Petraeus as the top commander in the Middle East and Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno to replace Petraeus as the chief military officer in Iraq. Last year, Petraeus helped to tame growing opposition to the Iraq war in Congress by providing measured assessments of progress and warning that an exodus of US troops would result in chaos. More»

General wraps up two days of testimony before Congress

(NEWSER) - Gen. David H. Petraeus told the House Armed Forces Committee today that he does not foresee another buildup of US armed forces in Iraq, calling the possibility of a new surge "a pretty remote thought in my mind." If violences escalates again, the Army will make do with American and Iraqi troops already there, the Washington Post reports. His testimony comes a day before President Bush will lay out his troop strategy. More»