So much for that "surprise visit" to Baghdad. Bush on June 14:
It was a pleasure to meet face-to-face with the Prime Minister. I talked to him on the phone a couple of times, but I thought it was important to sit down with him and talk to him in person. I saw firsthand the strength of his character and his deep determination to succeed, to build a country that can sustain itself, govern itself, and defend itself.What's coming from that same Iraqi Prime Minister tomorrow according to Newsweek:
A timetable for withdrawal of occupation troops from Iraq. Amnesty for all insurgents who attacked U.S. and Iraqi military targets. Release of all security detainees from U.S. and Iraqi prisons. Compensation for victims of coalition military operations.Unclear what the Iraqi Prime Minister "saw firsthand" when he met Bush -- maybe the weakness of Bush's character. Whatever it was, al-Maliki's government is completely rejecting some of Bush's top priorities. That "surprise visit" -- which the GOP and the media lapped up -- apparently didn't really make such a great impression on the Iraqis. After meeting Bush, the new government felt empowered to dis' him.
Those sound like the demands of some of the insurgents themselves, and in fact they are. But they're also key clauses of a national reconciliation plan drafted by new Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who will unveil it Sunday. The provisions will spark sharp debate in Iraq—but the fiercest opposition is likely to come from Washington, which has opposed any talk of timetables, or of amnesty for insurgents who have attacked American soldiers.
So another photo op, another failed policy.
