The Surge
This column was written by CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith.
We'll be hearing a lot about the surge over the next week or so.
Congress will get its progress report and we will hear the surge is working. With U.S. forces on patrol in Baghdad neighborhoods, civilian deaths have dropped. Though it's not clear they've dropped all that much throughout the country.
160,000 troops is still a pretty small number when talking about trying to put a lid on a place the size of California. So the bad guys have plenty of places to go when the U.S. moves in.
Haifa Street is a good example. Once a truly dangerous place, American forces cleaned it up, made it safe and handed control over to the Iraqis, only to have it fall into deadly chaos when the Iraqis couldn't keep the peace.
Well, the Americans are back again, with some Iraqis, and it's relatively safe and thriving. The bad news: an independent commission created by Congress claims today it will be a year to a year and a half before Iraqi security forces will be up to the task of taking over.
Harry's daily commentary can be heard on many CBS Radio News affiliates across the country.