Via Think Progress: Bill O’Reilly declares General David Petraeus his Person of the Year, “by a wide margin.” National Review says Time ought to pick Petraeus for Man of the Year. OK then, let’s look at how this year went:

January: President George Bush promotes Petraeus to four-star rank and appoints him as the new commander of Multinational Force Iraq. In his Senate confirmation hearings, Petraeus sells the so-called “surge” as the only hope for progress– but makes no explicit promises except for a prediction of more casualties. Success is up to the Iraqi politicians, he says.

February: A new National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq predicts that Iraqi leaders will be “hard pressed” to reconcile over the next 18 months. This means the stated goal of the so-called “surge” is a long shot at best.

March: In a meeting in Baghdad, Admiral Fallon, Petraeus’ superior as CENTCOM commander, told Petraeus to his face that he considered him to be “an ass-kissing little chickensh*t” and added, “I hate people like that.”

May: Congress enacts legislation to require the Iraqi government to meet 18 benchmarks first laid out in January. “The steps necessary for a credible government have been apparent for some time. Now the Iraqi Parliament is on notice to proceed without delay,” says Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC).

June: Petraeus says he sees “astonishing signs of normalcy” in half, perhaps two-thirds of Baghdad. A Pentagon report released at the same time concluded violence “has increased in most provinces, particularly in the outlying areas of Baghdad province…”

July: The Iraqi government has made no progress in achieving the benchmarks for success of the so-called “surge.” Their parliament goes on vacation for a month.

August: After reviewing an early draft of an updated Iraq National Intelligence Estimate, Petraeus succeeded in altering the document’s judgments about the levels of violence in Iraq. We learn that the much-touted “Petraeus Report” in September will actually be written by the White House PR staff.

September: Petraeus lied to Congress, claiming success for the so-called “surge.” Polls show a majority of Americans don’t believe his testimony is an honest assessment. In a moment of honesty, the general admitted that he did not know if the occupation of Iraq could make America safer.The New York Sun proposes that Petraeus run for president, despite his 24 percent approval rating.

November: Petraeus met with none other than Ahmed Chalabi, con artist extraordinary and an Iranian agent. Chalabi was appointed head of the services committee in the hope of bringing utility service to war-ravaged Baghdad neighborhoods. Meanwhile, no member of Congress has been allowed to read Petraeus’ Joint Campaign Plan.

December: 2007 has been the worst year since the Iraq invasion in terms of U.S. casualties, civilian casualties, and refugees.

UPDATE: Time Magazine has put Vladimir Putin on the cover as Person of the Year.