And, regarding this:
With people like John McCain, Michael O’Hanlon, and Ken Pollack now claiming to be war “critics,” that term is fast becoming a description for people who support the war but aren’t George Bush.
It's always been this way. Even before the war, "war critics" were almost entirely limited to those who criticized the timing, or the degree to which the UN or international community generally was on board. That was the respectable position. Just saying "stop!" was not.
Until Murtha, in late 2005, there wasn't really anyone "respectable" saying "get out." And, IIRC, it wasn't until late in the 2006 campaign that this notion really had any traction with most politicians.
Our elites - press, politicians, the very serious "foreign policy community," etc - failed us and failed us miserable.
Bygones, they say!