On the January 17 edition of Fox News' Special Report, chief political correspondent Carl Cameron reported that, contrary to “attack ads from the liberal anti-war group MoveOn[.org]" accusing Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) of crafting “the idea to escalate” the Iraq war, “McCain disputes the term 'escalation,' arguing that a temporary troop surge will help stabilize Iraq and make way for a political solution.” However, as Media Matters for America documented, The Washington Post reported on January 13 that McCain told the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank that "[t]o be of value, the surge [of U.S. troops in Iraq] must be substantial and it must be sustained." Moreover, speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee on January 12, McCain asserted, “A substantial and sustained increase in U.S. forces in Baghdad and Anbar province is necessary to bring down the toxic levels of violence there.” He later emphasized to the committee: “As I have said before, a small, short surge would be the worst of all worlds. We need troops in the numbers required to do the job, in place for as long as it takes to complete their mission.”

From the January 17 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Brit Hume:

CAMERON: That surge tactic was first and most prominently advanced last year by Arizona Senator John McCain. McCain's now actually facing attack ads from the liberal anti-war group MoveOn in key presidential primary states.

ANNOUNCER [video clip from MoveOn.org ad]: John McCain has done more than just embrace George Bush's failed policy in Iraq. It's actually his idea to escalate the war there.

CAMERON: McCain disputes the term “escalation,” arguing that a temporary troop surge will help stabilize Iraq and make way for a political solution. Republican hopefuls [former Massachusetts Gov.] Mitt Romney and [former New York City Mayor] Rudy Giuliani also back the president's proposal, but both say their support depends on clear Iraqi progress.