THe WEEKLY STANDARD has learned that John McCain spoke to General David Petraeus this afternoon at 1:45. A McCain aide says the two men discussed ways to consolidate the success in Iraq and regain the offensive in Afghanistan. McCain and Petraeus also spoke about the broader war on terror and the overall status of the fight seven years after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

McCain and Petraeus have become close in recent years after spending time together working on the surge and the counterinsurgency strategy that turned around the flagging U.S. military efforts in Iraq. And McCain pushed hard for Petraeus's promotion from Commanding General of Multinational Forces-Iraq to the the head of CENTCOM. At the Saddleback Forum last month, Rick Warren asked McCain which three individuals he would rely upon heavily during a McCain administration. Petraeus was the first person McCain named.