CORRECTION

A front-page profile Monday of Peter D. Feaver of Duke University's political science department mischaracterized a poster on the office door of Christopher Gelpi, a fellow Duke faculty member. The poster is a critique of the corporate influence on democracy.

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A central figure behind President Bush's new victory-in-Iraq strategy is a charismatic conservative sprung from Duke University's left-leaning political science department.

Peter D. Feaver, 43, is open-minded but a tough debate foe, his colleagues say. Students pack his classes. His international policy lectures earned him the university's top teaching award four years ago.

Then, there's the man on the basketball court: a pickup player who doesn't pass, questions every out-of-bounds call and happily hurls up bricks that clang off the rim.

"He's a darn gunner," said Michael Munger, chairman of Duke's political science department and Feaver's occasional teammate.

Munger could just as well be describing the political scientist's approach to his work.

Feaver made headlines last year when he and his left-leaning research partner, another Duke professor, showed that Americans would tolerate mounting casualties in Iraq if they believed the United States would win the war.

Late last month, when Bush's message of victory buzzed across the airwaves, Feaver made headlines again.

Now working in the federal government as a National Security Council adviser, Feaver was revealed to have been the original author of the online document that details Bush's plans for Iraq. The document, "National Strategy for Victory in Iraq," was released Nov. 30, the day Bush spoke to the U.S. Naval Academy.

The strategy report

The report described the ingredients necessary for victory in Iraq, which included steady progress at defeating terrorists and a growing role by Iraqis in providing for the country's security. It described a set of goals for strengthening Iraqi democracy and government institutions and rebuilding the economy. And it reviewed the successes in Iraq so far, such as the holding of parliamentary elections. A sample chapter title: "Our Strategy for Victory Is Clear."

Although the plan was dismissed by many Democrats as containing nothing new, it appears to have helped Bush with the public. According to the Rasmussen Reports polling agency, 48 percent of Americans now think the country is winning the war on terror, up nine points from November and the highest confidence rate this year. The survey was conducted after Bush's speech.

The Bush administration would not talk in detail about Feaver's role in writing the Iraq document, calling its development a collaboration.

The council's Iraq Directorate led the effort, and Feaver was among many council staffers offering comment over several months, according to a prepared statement from Frederick Jones, spokesman for the National Security Council.

Feaver is not allowed to give interviews.

"He's been a young, dynamic scholar," said Bill Boettcher, a political scientist at N.C. State University. "Even if you disagree with his views, he's someone who believes in a position and follows through."

Richard Kohn, a UNC-Chapel Hill professor who has written a book with Feaver, said he didn't think Bush's victory theme reflected the nuance and sophistication of Feaver's scholarship.

Still, colleagues say the policy bears the stamp of Feaver's research. "If you want to say that Feaver is at least responsible in some way for the strategy of emphasizing victory, that's true," Munger said. "But he is a Republican."

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