Shelley Berkley is the congresswoman for Las Vegas. Her delegation mate is Senate Majority Leader Reid. She has just returned from Iraq, and her perspective could be problematic for some Democrats. A former critic of the war in Iraq, her comments in the Las Vegas Review-Journal are upbeat and optimistic.
“This is a difference from what I anticipated,” Berkley told her hometown newspaper. “I did not anticipate the progress and the extraordinary morale of our troops.
“They believe they are turning the corner,” Berkley said. “Nobody is doing a victory lap at this point, but the reality is the military has done an extraordinary job.”
Berkley’s also praised the much-maligned Iraqi police.
“For years we had heard they weren’t ready to take over, but at this point there is such a significant difference,” Berkley said. “The Iraqis are truly stepping up to the plate and that accounts for the lowering of violence.
“Wherever you go, Iraqis and our American servicemen are telling us that the difference is dramatic,” Berkley said. “The violence is down 60 percent from last year.”
