At last Friday’s noon prayers (and in a subsequent statement on his website), Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr admitted that his influence over Iraqis is on the wane. Sadr’s Mahdi Army had wreaked havoc on Iraq during the country’s initial post-Saddam phase, killing non-Shi’ites and fomenting anti-American chaos. Now, in the face of increased national unity and a continued desire for calm, he’s been forced to recognize his growing irrelevance.

Best of all, in acknowledging his marginalization, Sadr cites the very things the war in Iraq was meant to provide for Iraqi citizens: freedom and prosperity. He said, “Many persons who are close to me have split for materialistic reasons or for wanting to be independent, and this was one of the reasons behind my absence.” The best reasons I can imagine.

In Sadr’s statement, we’re seeing the militant Shia analog of al Qaeda’s (inadvertent) admission of an operational meltdown last year. In November, during a raid north of Baghdad, U.S. forces seized documents in which al Qaeda leaders ranted about being in a state of “extraordinary crisis” due to the anti-terrorism efforts of Sunni Awakening groups. Hearing admissions of Islamist defeat in stereo, as it were, from extremist Sunni and Shia elements, is very promising. As the violent fringe withers away, the Iraqi center continues to step up and forge a path towards legitimate statehood. However, recognition of Iraqi progress from al Qaeda and Muqtada al-Sadr raises a question: When will our own Democratic leaders acknowledge the same?