I figured this was coming, it’s good to see that my paranoia isn’t entirely without merit. Given that General Casey is guilty of the Unforgivable Sin (read: he suggested something Bush didn’t want to do), it’s hardly surprising that the neocons would start the attacks on him, and McRage is leading the pack.

Republican U.S. Sen. John McCain on Sunday said he might vote against Gen. George W. Casey’s nomination as Army chief of staff, saying he had “serious concerns” about the man who has overseen the Iraq war since 2004.

“I have very serious concerns about General Casey’s nomination,” McCain said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

“I’m concerned about failed leadership, the message that sends to the rest of the military,” he added.

Yep, damn failed leadership. Now, the problem with this line of thought is that one thing Bush and his supporters have been saying for years now is that history will judge the Iraq Fiasco. The implication is that things look bad NOW, but when we all look back in a few decades it will be favorably.

So, unless I’m misunderstanding their argument, this means we can’t look at how things appear currently as an accurate metric of the success. Which means McCain’s comment about “failed leadership” is entirely resting on the prospect that the Fiasco, now bereft of Casey’s leadership, will succeed at some point thus retroactively label Casey as a failed leader because victory didn’t happen while he was at the helm.

Of course, I tend to misunderstand these guys.