"Last Gasp" Again

I don't recall the exact details that provoked the comment, but at one point during the heavy fighting in Iraq Rumsfeld referred to the upsurge in violence as the "last gasp" of the insurgency, and assured us that victory was just around the corner. As I recall, things got seriously worse after that.

Now we are being told that the failure of the Taliban to quit fighting for the winter, the fact that they have kept up their attacks on us during a time when they usually retreat to Pakistan to rest up, is actually good news.

Afghanistan has seen an unusual amount of military activity for the winter, a fact that International Security Assistance Force officials attribute to a greater number of insurgents who stayed in the country to fight, rather than spending the winter resting in Pakistan or elsewhere outside Afghanistan. ISAF officials say that they believe this may give them the upper hand this spring and summer.

(emphasis mine) Not exactly the same thing as a "last gasp," but...