The evidence is clear: the United States is winning in Iraq. Despite the willingness of the mainstream media to ignore democratic progress in Iraq, General Petraeus’ counterinsurgency plan has borne fruit and the democratically-elected Iraqi government is working to bring reconciliation to the people of Iraq. Now, as pro-victory citizens, it is our task to help bring about political progress in Washington for the military progress our troops have secured abroad.

This spring, Students for Victory is running ‘Eight Weeks to Assessment’, our campaign as part of the overall pro-victory coalition’s efforts to prepare for General Petraeus’ testimony before Congress in mid-April. Defeatist members of Congress and their leftist allies used the Gen. Petraeus’ last assessment in September as a launching pad for attacks on our mission there, our soldiers, and even the General himself, and we expect the same to occur in April.

To prepare for the upcoming struggle, we will be rapidly assembling a 'ground game' in eight steps. Until General Petraeus testifies, we will send you an action item every week. Individually each item is fairly simple, but as a whole, your efforts will help Students for Victory make a difference in the struggle for Iraq and help defeat the defeatists.

Week 1: Invite Five Friends

Week 2: Nominate State Coordinator

Week 3: Join Our Mailing List

Week 4: Call Jack Murtha

Thanks to everyone who called Rep. John Murtha’s office over the past two weeks! We are keeping the pressure up on Congress to maintain support for the mission and our troops in harm’s way. On a side note, General Petraeus’ testimony was recently scheduled for early April instead of March as expected, so we will be expanding our efforts beyond the original eight weeks with additional action items.

In recent days , there have been a number of important developments in Iraq, including a continuance of the Mahdi Army’s ceasefire with Coalition forces, the scheduling of Iraqi provincial elections, and the passage of a major Iraqi reconciliation bill. The American people deserve to know the significant progress our soldiers and diplomats are accomplishing in Iraq, but since the earliest days of the mission the mainstream media has focused primarily on terrorist acts and not on hard news.

Thankfully, there are a number of serious journalists out there putting themselves in danger to report on things the mainstream media refuses to cover. The Students for Victory team relies on the reports of Bill Roggio, Michael Yon and Michael Totten for information on military operations, Iraqi politics, and the state of affairs on the ground.

This week, we are asking you to visit Bill Roggio, Michael Yon, and Michael Totten, check out their reporting, and if you can spare the money, a small donation.

It takes more money than you might expect to pay for their operations, and they provide a truly valuable service not only to those who follow the war closely, but to the American people. Check out Bill Roggio’s site at www.longwarjournal.org, Michael Yon’s site at http://www.michaelyon-online.com, and Michael Totten’s site at http://www.michaeltotten.com. They have fascinating articles, and we hope you’ll support them!