Meet Lucky, the stray who found our home last week.

Yep, nothing says success like marking time for five years and counting.

But unlike in September, when that news was fresh and the administration said a corner had been turned, even some of the war’s strongest supporters in Congress have grown impatient and frustrated. Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, and Crocker will face many lawmakers who had expected more by now and who are wondering whether any real change will occur before the clock runs out on the Bush administration.

"I think all of us realize we’re disappointed at where we are," Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said at a hearing last week. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) asked, "How do we get out of this mess?" While the cost in U.S. lives and money increases, said another senior GOP senator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity: "We cannot . . . just say we’re coasting through and waiting for the next president."…

Although the United States has spent nearly all of the approximately $21 billion appropriated for Iraqi reconstruction since 2003, $500 million has been budgeted annually for the past three years for the Commander’s Emergency Response Program, distributed by U.S. officers on the ground for local development efforts.

Despite considerable U.S. expenditures on oil and electricity infrastructure, oil exports and the supply of electricity and other services have not risen significantly since 2004. In early April, according to State Department statistics, the electricity supply met 58 percent of demand, compared with 66 percent a year earlier. The International Committee of the Red Cross reported last month that "millions of Iraqis have insufficient access to clean water, sanitation and health care."

So much for the rose-colored glasses version, even in the WaPo. Tom Ricks has some good questions and some things to think about and watch for during the hearings. Juan Cole has a round-up of the latest, and it is not cheery news. The NYTimes shows the startling increases of violence, including within the supposedly secure Green Zone in Baghdad, where attacks are up sharply yet again. AP is reporting that al Sadr is again threatening to rescind the cease-fire.

With Sens. Clinton, McCain and Obama in the Senate Armed Services Committee for the testimony today, expect the media to parse every last syllable, facial expression and eye roll from the presidential candidates. Would that they would give the same level of scrutiny to the honeyed evasions and pronouncements dripping off the tongues of Petraeus and Crocker — I could do with some serious fact-checking and calling of bullshit during this round of testimony rather than a horse race bonanza. Frankly, we all could — this is too important for the infotainment treatment.

(Yes, I know the picture has nothing whatsoever to do with Iraq and the Senate Armed Services Committee. But it was too cute a pix not to share. Meet Lucky, the little puppy who stumbled into our driveway last week and has now found a home with us. The Peanut, as you might imagine, is thrilled.  She’s home with me today, so I’m going to watch the hearings and will highlight along as we go — but full liveblogging with a small puppy and five year old is impossible this morning.  So let’s follow along together in the thread…)

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