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John McCain
July 22, 2008
"Because of the surge we were able to go out and protect that sheik and others. And it began the Anbar awakening. I mean, that's just a matter of history."
—McCain, disputing Democratic rival Barack Obama, who claims security in Iraq would have improved with or without the surge, during an interview with CBS' Katie Couric. But the war's timeline reveals the exact opposite: the Anbar Awakening occurred before the surge strategy was even conceived. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann later cried foul when CBS chose not to air the erroneous statement that night. The network later posted the entire video on its website.
— M.J. Stephey