Whether the report presages a victory so resounding that it ends the long war, or just another inconclusive skirmish, now depends on the 100 battle-hardened warriors of the Senate.
"People were saying, 'Oh my God, there might be another one'," she said. "they were not exactly panicked but they were wondering what was going on and what to do."
This resulted in a tremendous loss of self-confidence. Soldiers and officers came to doubt the things they were fighting for, even the necessity of fighting.