It's clear that John McCain's teetering political strategy on Iraq needs, in order to have the beginnings of a plausible chance of success, the American people to view the surge entirely out of the context of the war. Hence, via Marc Ambinder again, quotes like these:

Apparently Sen. Obama, who does not understand what's happening in Iraq or fails to acknowledge the success in Iraq, would rather lose a war than lose a campaign.

If you view the surge within the context of the Iraq war, it looks like an A-Rod at-bat in the postseason: a monster home-run into the black seats at Yankee Stadium, to be sure, but only occurring when the Yanks are down 14-2, and only after he's missed every previous opportunity to influence the game. To continue the analogy -- which really flatters McCain -- Jed Lewison of the Jed Report has put together this brilliant 9-minute video reminding everyone of what John McCain's judgment on Iraq was like when it mattered.