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The Iraq war, intended by George W. Bush to make the West secure, defeat Islamic radicalism and make democracy a reality in the Middle East, is for now forgotten by a news media obsessed by Afghanistan, barring the occasional nasty headline from Baghdad. The U.S. troop surge of 2007 has been said by apologists to have righted earlier wrongs. Many political and academic gurus take comfort from examples showing Iraqis now able to work together. Iraq's parliament, still vigorous in debate, is seen as proof of how a civil society based on the rule of law, freedom of choice and respect for others could emerge.

As Barack Obama's administration continues to redeploy and withdraw from Iraq,...