Joe Klein confesses he was wrong on the surge, but throws in two addenda , one of which is wrong and the other frankly obnoxious.

He tries the old saw that Iraq has diverted resources from needed fights in Afghanistan and against Al Qaeda more generally. But what evidence is there of this? And why does he not address CIA Chief Michael Hayden’s recent report and other information on our progress against Al Qaeda? Well, those would be inconvenient facts.

But that is small stuff compared to this:

The notion that we could just waltz in and inject democracy into an extremely complicated, devout and ancient culture smacked–still smacks–of neocolonialist legerdemain. The fact that a great many Jewish neoconservatives — people like Joe Lieberman and the crowd over at Commentary — plumped for this war, and now for an even more foolish assault on Iran, raised the question of divided loyalties: using U.S. military power, U.S. lives and money, to make the world safe for Israel. And then there is the question–made manifest by the no-bid contracts offered U.S. oil companies by the Iraqis–of two oil executives, Bush and Cheney, securing a new source of business for their Texas buddies.

And just who would raise the “question of divided loyalties” — the favorite from the anti-Semitic playbook? Why, it’s Klein himself. Perhaps he suggesting a new standard for Jews: take no position that cannot be construed as an example of dual loyalties. Or better yet, take no position which might benefit Israel and avoid the problem altogether.

Leave aside the non-Jewish supporters of the war, Klein offers not one smidgen of support that Lieberman or any other Jewish advocate of the war did not believe it was in America’s security interest to pursue the war and/or to prosecute it effectively. One can argue with the merits of those individuals’ positions without clumsily injecting an anti-Semitic canard into the discussion.