Sally Buzbee and Sameer N. Yacoub (where have I heard that name before?) at the AP do their very best in this new AP report to bring the spirits down inside this country towards the Iraq war.  They’ve heard the poll numbers are up and they cannot let that stand!

You want to know how far they go?  Well we’ve heard how July had the lowest troop death rate since last November, a sign that the surge is working.  But with this report they delve into the numbers with some math to ensure that this newfound optimism does not stand:

Although U.S. military deaths dropped in July, a wider accounting of the figures offered a sobering overview.

The daily average for U.S. troop deaths in July was at least 2.55 – higher than the daily averages of 2.25 last year, 2.32 in 2005 and 2.33 in 2004. So far in August, the daily average is 2.71.

This was also the deadliest July for U.S. troops since the war began. In July 2006, 43 U.S. troops were killed in Iraq, and 54 died in each of the previous two Julys.

So instead of focusing on the fact that the death rate had been on a downward slope they instead compare it to the same exact months for the last few years and then average the daily rates to ensure that every liberal knows….wait for it…..

We’re losing the war!  Get us out now!  Run like cowards I say!

No need to focus on anything positive in their reporting when they have so much spin to take care of.