Adm. William Fallon, the chief of the U.S. Central Command, told the House Armed Services Committee today that he sees things "on a daily basis" that give him "some cause for optimism" in Iraq. "But I'll tell you," he said, "that there is hardly a week that goes by, certainly a day that doesn't goes by, without some major event that also causes us to lose ground."

Asked about the comment today, Dana Perino said that Fallon is simply saying what the White House is saying: That the situation in Iraq is "extremely difficult and dangerous" but that there are "small signs of hope that the Baghdad security plan would be able to reduce the violence enough so that the Maliki government can get reconciliation in order to bring a more peaceful existence for the Iraqis."

Oh, and then she added this: "It's going to take -- it's going to take a long time before we can finish out this new Baghdad security plan."