I'MMA LET YOU FINISH

Gravatarwow, frist on 2 Chalabi threads.
good nows, but don't count the chickens before they hatch


GravatarHI.


GravatarSun is shining, skies are blue, and the Bush admin is finally seeing sense.

Some reasons to be cheerful.

OTOH, some reasons not to be so cheerful are that there's been yet another attack on American forces in Iraq.


GravatarStory here


GravatarChalabi has become too expensive an Iraqi whine even for teetolaler George W. I'll drink to that.


GravatarThat is unfortunate, truly unfortunate. Such a man only comes along once in a lifetime. We can only hope he can locate another country to take advantage of.


GravatarThis will not be sufficient. We need to turn Chalabi over to the Jordanians for prosecution on those bank fraud charges as well.

That might explain why Richard Perle was flacking so hard for him Thursday, as well.


GravatarBut ... but ... Chalabi's the greatest Arab since Mohammed!


Gravatarso you woke up this morning and coppied josh marshal eh.


Gravatar$340,000 a month? how much body amor would that buy?


GravatarI'm sure Chalabi has invested that 340k/month wisely so he can enjoy his early retirement.


GravatarWorth noting: the story is a CIA leak, and therefore not necessarily definitive but another skirmish in the war between CIA and DOD.


GravatarBluesman:

When Atrios, or any other self-respecting blogger picks up a tip from another blog, you'll see a "via Josh Marshall", or somesuch appended or prepended to the post. It's pretty much customary.


GravatarActually, upon further reflection, this is supremely ironic since Chalabi may have pissed off the Bushies for the one thing he did that was right:

He generated anger in Washington yesterday when he said a new U.S. plan to allow some former officials of Hussein's ruling Baath Party and military to return to office is the equivalent of returning Nazis to power in Germany after World War II.

However much of a scumbag Chalabi is, he's right about this. And we did let former Nazis return to their jobs, too, come to think of it.

If that's the straw that broke the camel's back, that says more about the Bushies than it does about Chalabi.


GravatarI'm skeptical and thanks for the post and link from Melanie that confirms my skepticism. Seeing is believing. I trust very little if anything that comes from our misadministration these days. Haven't we all been fooled before? There is more here than meets the eye. I doubt that the neocons would relinquish their dream of having their handpicked henchman run Iraq quite so easily. I'll just wait this celebration out and see what happens over the next year.


GravatarOK. Chaffing exceped.


GravatarOK. Chaffing exceped.


GravatarSullyWatch: After assorted of the Wars of the Roses, some Kings of England even let some of the people who had fought them back into government... keeping a close eye on them, admittedly, but acknowledging that these people are the ones who know how to get things done. Be interesting to see how it pans out in Iraq...


GravatarSullywatch - an extensive program of denazification was undertaken immediately after the cessation of hostilities in Germany, as it was deemed necessary to have the government functioning "properly".

Chalabi is lucky if he's not assassinated by the U.S. - that Perle is still sponsoring him must mean that Perle's got a lot to lose by not getting Chalabi in power.


GravatarWell now I see how other people do the double post thing. I hit the other enter button with my big fat thumb when I replaced my keypad to my desk. sorry again.


GravatarI guess these means Chalabi doesn't make this years cover of Time Magazine as 'Man of the Year.'


GravatarDoes this mean Chalabi has to disband his militia?


GravatarThis may suggest a significant power struggle going on within the Bush administration. It certainly is a change, and no change happens in a vacuum.


GravatarChalabi was the perfect guy -- self-serving, dishonest,venal -- I can't understand this!


GravatarOT, but where are the screaming headlines for this:

Polls show Kerry ahead on electoral vote

Washington, DC, Apr. 23 (UPI) -- An analysis of statewide presidential polls published Friday by The Hotline shows Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., ahead in the electoral college.

The Hotline's study of reputable statewide polls conducted since January 1, 2004, has Kerry holding an overall lead in 13 states containing 204 electoral votes. President George W. Bush is currently leading in 16 states and has a total of 174 electoral votes out of the 270 necessary for election.

In states where either candidate leads by more than the poll's margin of error, Kerry is ahead in seven states with a total of 123 electoral votes while Bush leads in eight states with a total of 86 electoral votes.


GravatarChalabi's friends still run the banking system, and the proposal, as I have seen it, bars the iterim government members from running for office.

I will lay good money that the plan is

1. appoint people who will do all kinds of things that Bush wants done. Like say, paying back Bush backers who Iraq owes money to.

2. Have elections where Chalabi is a candidate, and the occupation authority does everything but count the ballots stuffed into boxes.


Gravatar"This may suggest a significant power struggle going on within the Bush administration. It certainly is a change, and no change happens in a vacuum."

THAT'S why Bush's opinions are unchangeable!
Chalabi: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me a hundred times, won't get fooled again. Really.


GravatarAnd, I've read a lot on blogs over the months on how campaigning should be done. I'm advising the Jim Newberry campaign, he's starting to blog, and we are going to be asking bloggers a lot about how the campaign should go.

So tell us which issue the blog ads should focus on.


GravatarAs far as I am concerned, we can't see the back of Chalabi fast enough. Simply extradite him to Jordan. Then maybe -- just maybe -- King Abdullah might be willing to reschedule his meeting with Bush. If the Jordanians were the Israelis, they would have just sent a team to kidnap Chalabi and return him to their jurisdiction.

On the other hand, I also find it difficult to believe that the neocons would simply acquiesce to the loss of their investment in Chalabi. After all, he is almost family to the Perle-Feith connection. Furthermore, I'm sure he has promised them permanent bases, recognition of Israel, unlimited oil contracts, and anything else he can deliver once he is in charge.

I guess the unpardonable sin to the Bush misadministration is suggesting that they are soft on Nazis (or Nazi-like people). Chalabi may have crossed the last line.


GravatarOT, but where are the screaming headlines for this:

True, great article. And from the Washington Times no less!! (maybe that is why no one from the left has seen it!)


GravatarStirling,
Blogads for candidates should be catchy and a bit nasty in a light-hearted way, but without being silly. Also, it helps if you change the graphic/text on a regular basis, which you're free to do.


GravatarDave, Jeebus, sounds good, but I wouldn't count your chickens just yet. It's April - elections are (does the math) more than half a year away.


GravatarPerhaps OT, but what was this week's "Friday surprise"?
Or is it still too early to tell?


GravatarI wouldn't count your chickens just yet.

Believe me, I'm not, I'm not! But as Kos has pointed out, the state polls are much more instructive than the national polls, since the states (and the electoral count) are where the real battles lie...


GravatarAlso, I wanted to give poor Tena a thread of hope!


Gravatar"Friday Surprise" was Bremer saying he'll re-hire most of the ba'athists he fired.


GravatarHave the Baathists made a better deal with Halliburton than Chalabi could offer?


Gravatarhttp://dailywarnews.blogspot.com/

It's about time to check in here again.


GravatarHow nice.

However. Take a look at Stephen Holmes' review of the Rise of the Vulcans (The National Insecurity State) in The Nation this week. www.thenation.com

Here's one:
"...the civilian leadership in the Pentagon entertained no more interest in the fate of Iraq after Saddam's fall than in the fate of Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban. Or it may reveal that specialists in military affairs do not know the first thing about democracy, its preconditions, its history or its inherent fragilities and disorders. Perhaps ignorance and bad theory explain how otherwise benevolent men could have confused the toppling of a dictator with the establishment of democracy, as if replacing Saddam with Chalabi was going to be as easy as replacing Clinton with Bush....

But how can an Administration that expects blind trust at home be serious about creating democracy abroad? Indeed, the most glaring evidence of the Administration's nondemocratic instincts is the dependence of its foreign policy on high-tech weaponry and a volunteer army. Vietnam taught hawks of Rumsfeld and Cheney's generation that the US government cannot sustain a bloody confrontation with an "evil" enemy in the teeth of public opposition. But they also realized how to blunt public hostility to unexplained military adventures. This would be possible if precision weaponry could reduce casualties substantially and if the soldiers who were eventually killed or wounded were "volunteers" unable to find equivalent economic opportunities in the civilian economy and who were drawn disproportionately from minority groups with little political clout. To avoid the burden of explaining its irrationally targeted bellicosity, in other words, the Administration must assiduously avoid a draft, which could cause white middle-class America to start asking embarrassing questions. Its firm opposition to reinstating conscription, in other words, is rooted in a Vietnam-era aversion to democratic accountability....


GravatarWouldn't be ironic if the new Iraqi
Govt not only takes control of all
Baath files that Chalabi has, but also starts new files on Chalabi-Perle-Feith connections and shares those files with Kerrey admin?


GravatarHalliburton is the real government in Iraq. Whoever makes good with them wins.


Gravatar
so you woke up this morning and coppied josh marshal eh.


Yea, now wait for Kos to wake up.
This is viral blogging.


GravatarWhat? You mean a dissembling charlatan who's hated by the locals isn't the best choice to put a friendly face on the US occupation? Who could have ever guessed?

Sarcasm off for a moment, if this is true (and they follow through on it), it's good news. With him and his cronies out of the way, the reconstruction might actually get somewhere. Not as good as a headline saying "Halliburton's contracts terminated", but good.

Too bad they didn't figure this out a year ago.


GravatarChalabi out, Negroponte in.

Chalabi given billions already. Will wait at the edge of table for big scraps.

Bushliarco learns NOTHING. Still intends to reduce Iraq to three territories by fomenting civil war.

Sixteen heavy-duty airfields, ready for ME-wide genocide to come.


GravatarThis news comes about a year too late. Chalabi was the Rasputin of Iraq--not the problem, but a symptom of the problem. Now that the neo-con vision of Iraq is crashing and burning, what will replace it? And more importantly, can anything prevent the descent into chaos and civil war? No one wants to come and say it, but I really don't see how the U.S. can establish any legitimacy in Iraq at this point. The U.S. occupation IS the problem in Iraq. The White House had a year to prove that they had come to liberate Iraq with no ulterior motives (but that was never the plan, was it?--it was always about imposing an American model). After a year of postponing elections, promoting their own people, and privatizing the economy, the WH is now seeing the results of its own failed policy. But the neo-cons aren't going to go down without a fight--they're going to take down everybody they can, including the U.N., with them (see the "sensational" leaked memo last week). It's a fight to the death, both in Iraq and Washington.


Gravatarwill bush lose the Judith Miller vote?


GravatarWhat about Salaem Chalibi?


GravatarP.S. don't expect Chalabi to stand trial anywhere soon--he knows too much


GravatarOT: Remember back when Hussein was still in power, and offered to dual Bush one-on-one? And Ari said the notion was ridiculuous?


GravatarSorry, 'duel' not 'dual'


GravatarRobert: "If the Jordanians were the Israelis, they would have just sent a team to kidnap Chalabi and return him to their jurisdiction."

Hey, the US used to do that too!!! Remember Tim Leary?


GravatarP.S. don't expect Chalabi to stand trial anywhere soon--he knows too much

And since he seems more than willing to shoot his mouth off, this is certainly true.

What a slimy, lying promoter. Leave it to the crooks in the Bush administration to latch onto him.


(dave, thanks for that electoral college news. With all the people mad at Bush, I find it hard to believe that the race is that close, although Kerry does have to get his message out. He will.)


GravatarChalabi's friends still run the banking system, and the proposal, as I have seen it, bars the iterim government members from running for office.

I will lay good money that the plan is

1. appoint people who will do all kinds of things that Bush wants done. Like say, paying back Bush backers who Iraq owes money to.

2. Have elections where Chalabi is a candidate, and the occupation authority does everything but count the ballots stuffed into boxes.


Ah, now this makes more sense. If members of the interim government are barred from standing for election in the permanent government, then this move is brilliant both strategically and tactically.


Chalabi is "disowned" by the US by being refused a position in the interim government.
Chalabi gains support for being out of favor with the US with Iraqis who have become distrustful of the US as the occupation has lengthened and its methods become more harsh.
Chalabi gains majority Shi'a support for being a moderate who is now no longer supported by the US.
Chalabi runs for PM with Shi'a backing and the neocons under Negroponte to count the ballots.

What could be nicer?


Gravatar>Stirling,
Blogads for candidates should be catchy and a bit nasty in a light-hearted way, but without being silly. Also, it helps if you change the graphic/text on a regular basis, which you're free to do.

Thanks for the advice! We intend to come up with a bunch of ads, and do a survey asking people's preferences, and run ones that people picked.

This really is the blogsphere's chance to give direct advice to a campaign. Jim needs the help, and I believe there are a lot of smart people here who have good ideas.

People should feel free to send me any ideas at stirling_newberry@yahoo.com as well.

Thanks all.


GravatarHere's a journal from a man who loves America.

http://www.gdnctr.com/list2.htm


Gravatarflip-flop
flip-flop
flip-flop
flip-flop


GravatarRobert; Great plan, but too clean.
Where's the OIL?


GravatarChalabi gains support for being out of favor with the US with Iraqis who have become distrustful of the US as the occupation has lengthened and its methods become more harsh.

I don't see the Iraqis *suddenly* flocking to Chalabii because he's fallen from grace in the Bush administration. Remeber that the man hadn't actually lived in Iraq for years. He's not going to be trusted by the ones who are also jockeying for position.

He's got his own militia, but so what? The others do, too. No advantage.


GravatarThis should annoy Judy Miller and Snitchens to no end.

If Snitch is still in L.A. (getting propped up by good pal Martin Amis) I expect to be stumbling over his Scotch-besotted carcass at the L.A. Times Book Fair this weekend at UCLA.


GravatarReality finally begins to creep into George Bush's brain! Miracles DO happen, people!

Why don't some of the Sunni guerrillas kidnap Chalabi and turn him over to the Jordanian government (in return for a finder's fee, of course)?


GravatarTR; I suppose some enterprising uh, contractors could do the same thing, eh?


Gravatar
Ah, now this makes more sense. If members of the interim government are barred from standing for election in the permanent government, then this move is brilliant both strategically and tactically.

Robert, Yes, Neocons can come up with these crazy schemes. I grant them that.
But what if the interim govt arrests and
starts prosecuting Chalabi on some charge?
Remember, France/Germany/Russia are not going to keep quiet after the interim govt comes to power. They will be jockeying for power too. We may be No 1 militarily, but not always No 1 in diplomacy/strategic thinking -
especially this neocon gang.

Actually, i would say this gang is the dumbest group that we have ever seen.
Perle as thinker? Give me a break, pls.


GravatarThe Jordanians sure aren't very happy with the Bushies right now. Maybe they'd like to have a little fun with Chalabi.

He's been tried and convicted, after all.


GravatarCouldn't have happened to a more deserving guy.

I still hope to see his head on a pike, somehow, some way.


GravatarRobert; Great plan, but too clean.
Where's the OIL?


You must have missed my earlier post where I was somewhat skeptical that the neocons would be willing to cut Chalabi loose so easily:
"On the other hand, I also find it difficult to believe that the neocons would simply acquiesce to the loss of their investment in Chalabi. After all, he is almost family to the Perle-Feith connection. Furthermore, I'm sure he has promised them permanent bases, recognition of Israel, unlimited oil contracts, and anything else he can deliver once he is in charge."

The OIL is in Chalabi's pocket once he's in charge.


GravatarWell, I knew something was going on...

...I woke up this morning to a whole flock of flying pigs going past my bedroom window.


GravatarI don't see the Iraqis *suddenly* flocking to Chalabii because he's fallen from grace in the Bush administration. Remeber that the man hadn't actually lived in Iraq for years. He's not going to be trusted by the ones who are also jockeying for position.

That's why it is important that Chalabi's "dismissal" be as loud and acrimonious as possible. And preferably it should be over an issue that the Shi'a can identify strongly with, such as empowering ex-Ba'athists.


GravatarChalabi's nephew is still in the middle of things, though. There's been some kind of deal struck. Don't expect to see him holding a garage sale any time soon.

By the way, where are all those looted antiquities?


GravatarI don't know, Robert. Chalabi is damaged goods. Perhaps the Iraqis are smart enough to steer clear of a man whose primary interest is money - his money.


GravatarRobert; In whose pocket is the OIL now?
I see Chalabi as more of a mafia lootenant, fronting for those wishing to remain unseen.


GravatarActually, i would say this gang is the dumbest group that we have ever seen.
Perle as thinker? Give me a break, pls.


I don't say their plans aren't full of flaws of the most obvious sort. See Perle and Frum's book (I forget the title, Unser Kampf or something like that) for countless examples. The dangerous thing is that they believe in these things and they are apparently able to convince others.


GravatarChalabi can take his money and run.
and his nephew gets to proscecute
Sadaam.


GravatarRobert; In whose pocket is the OIL now?

In the CPA's. They own Iraq. But they can't keep it.

I see Chalabi as more of a mafia lootenant, fronting for those wishing to remain unseen.

I think you're missing the point. Chalabi is not really being cut loose by the neocons. After he is elected PM, he will find that alignment with the US and the presence of US troops in Iraq is "necessary" for security. The neocons' problem is whether he can be trusted to remain a "lootenant" after he get the big prize.


Gravatarsee cole on the subject, he has a guest piece today too that is worth a read.


GravatarPerle's hanging onto Chalabi because Perle's about to lose his other meal ticket, his perch at the Jerusalem Post, now that Connie Black's gone down.


GravatarI speak. Policies change.

Ah, the burden of command.


GravatarThat's the problem with the Bush administration. Chalabi thought he was in control but is now realizing he was just one more piece of chum in their bucket.
You are only as useful as you are loyal to the ideology.
He questioned the ideology without realizing that the ideology is whatever the administration says it is.
When the ideology talks, Chalabi should listen. Here is some schmuck who thought he had the same kind of leverage the Saudi royal family had without realizing that he was just a number on the administration's whore list.
Like all good sailor knows, every port has'em, and if they decide to go for cleaner clams to bake they will. Chalabi should have known that when it comes to using people Saddam has nothing on the Bush klan.
If this is indeed true and they are on the verge of leaving Chalabi out to dry, there is a good chance Chalabi may make an effort to earn favor amongsst the Dems by coming clean on the whole scam.
But no doubt this has something to do with Jordanian politics.
There was no chance of Chalabi getting into the top reigns of the Iraqi power structure without Jordan knowing it and complaining. To make any plan work in Israel they are going to have to massage the Jordanians and this might be it.
With the recent jordanian snub on their part due to the Israeli issue, there is no doubt we are going to be doing some ass-kissing to the Jordanians to get them on board.

Chalabi should realize as long as Paul Wolfowitz has sway in this whitehouse, there is little chance any arab is going to get the top consideration. That spot is reserved for Israel alone.

MYOB'
.


Gravatar"he said a new U.S. plan to allow some former officials of Hussein's ruling Baath Party and military to return to office is the equivalent of returning Nazis to power in Germany after World War II."


You've got to admit, lying sack of shit that he is, Chalabi does have a point. Didn't the Bush regime say that the major goals of this war were to not only capture Saddam (whom the wingnuts liked to compare to Hitler) but also the rounding up of remaining B'aath Party loyalists? In any event, they should hand Chalabi over to the Jordanians and let them do with him what they will (after we recover whatever is left of the $340K per month allowance we've been giving him). This is all further proof that Bushco didn't have a single fucking clue as to what to do after we shocked and awed the Iraqis. One other thing: Latest news from Iraq - 5 Dead US soldiers today. 5 more coffins the Pentagons's not going to let you see.


GravatarSullywatch - an extensive program of denazification was undertaken immediately after the cessation of hostilities in Germany, as it was deemed necessary to have the government functioning

Yes, and right though it was, it was abandoned partway through.

See here

In practice, de-Nazification ran into a number of snags. First, the program required an enormous bureaucracy the Allies were ill-equipped to manage. In the American zone of occupation alone, some 10 million Germans submitted questionnaires; reviewing each one took time, and finding German speakers to run the tribunals was tough. Efforts to facilitate the process often weakened its efficacy. The authorities proclaimed general amnesties (for, say, individuals whose sole official political affiliation was with the Hitler Youth in their teens) that left some Nazi sympathizers unpunished. And some of the Germans found to run the tribunals were reluctant to dole out harsh sentences to their countrymen, especially to those defendants who had obtained affidavits attesting to their anti-Nazi behavior. These affidavits, called Persilschein, or laundry certificates, were often attainable from local priests and were occasionally bought.

In addition to the logistical dilemmas, the United States ran into political tangles as it administered the program, which some felt should punish Germans and others felt should be a process that reintegrated Germans into society. As the Cold War began and the United States needed to win over its West German allies, de-Nazification was thought too alienating, and the system began to peter out by 1948. Some Germans with dubious histories were exonerated, simply because their tribunals were scheduled too late.


So, another lesson from history the Bushies thought they could do without.


Gravatar
Don't ask about Iraq security -- it's too risky



BAGHDAD, April 24 (Reuters) - Iraq's U.S.-led authorities are telling anyone who wants information about risks in the violence-torn country to seek it elsewhere.

"For security reasons, there are no security reports," says the weekly reports section of the Coalition Provisional Authority website (http:/www.cpa-iraq.org/weeklies.html).

The website includes reports on electricity production and reconstruction projects, but not on security, the top concern of foreign investors and local businesses.



04/24/04 10:05 ET


GravatarIf Bremer is admitting that mistakes were made, and the administration's support of Chalabi is wavering, we must be in very, very deep doo doo in Iraq.


GravatarThe article said:

'The United States and the top U.N. envoy to Iraq have decided to exclude the majority of the Iraqi politicians the U.S.-led coalition has relied on over the past year when they select an Iraqi government to assume power on June 30, U.S. and U.N. officials said yesterday.'


This is why having the "International Community" involved in decision-making is a good thing. U.S. efforts to establish a government in Iraq have always had that tinge of cronyism (sp?), the process of transferring power seemed set up to favor the Iraqi members of the CPA in whatever new government emerged.


GravatarAfter the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln sought to re-integrate the South into the Union, and not punish the Confederates, for the sake of reuniting the nation and moving forward.

(After Lincoln's assassination, Andrew Johnson pursued a harsher policy towards the South, which led to a century of Democratic party hegemony in that region)

Yet another lesson the Bushies could have learned from history, but didn't, thanks to their towering hubris.

They are now, belatedly, pursuing a more practical and rational strategy regarding former Ba'athists. But it may well be too little, too late. They have squandered the window of opportunity and the goodwill we had after the toppling of Saddam's regime.

Naturally, the credibility-challenged Bush regime's numerous failures will be laid at the feet of those of us who pointed them out, because we didn't stick our heads far enough into the sand (or some other dark place where the sun never shines...) and pretend everything was going really swell over there.


GravatarAlthough I agree with the policy of letting some back into the government, it should be recognized as a temporary deal and mandatory elections should be held later under UN guidance to determine if they should remain.

Yet Kerry and the Dems should smack the GOP in the mouth by using this as a flip flop example, and demand that if the GOP is going to excuse this as a necessity to get Iraq up and running, then Kerry's flip-flops should also be considered a necessity based on last minute rider bills and such that often get pushed on which drive some people away from their previous position of it's passage.

Make the facts known folks! That's all it takes.

MYOB'
.


GravatarAs for Chalabi and the bank fraud charges. This kind of stuff is probably rampant throughout the Bush support structure. I would not be surprised if there aren't dozens of people in the Bush supporter heirarchy that have done this for which they are being protected by Bush's reluctance to go after them.

If they turn over Chalabi to the Jordanians there will be demands for Bush to turn over the others as well.
Like Kennyboy from Enron.
Though that wasn't bank fraud I doubt there was little difference in terms of how many people got shafted out of millions.

MYOB'
.


GravatarChalabi has done his job. I see no problem in getting rid of him. I think the US should foster as many different political parties as possible. Democracy thrives on difference.


GravatarRenato, I think the same thing happened in 94' when Newt, after the elections that saw the GOP take control of congress, made his comments that "..The president no longer matters.." and essentially predicted they were going to play the sore loser and treat the Dems as they had been treated, thus forfeiting any claim to holding the moral high ground.

MYOB'
.


GravatarRicky you are an ignorant fuck! Did you know that?

There hasn't been a democracy in this country since before the white man came here and stole it from the real owners.

We live in a plutocratic oligarchy. I know those are big words but if you ask Mom maybe she could explain it to you.

MYOB'
.


GravatarMy idea for handling Chalabi is simple. Kick him out of an airplane 5000 feet over Amman, Jordan. It's up to him whether to open the parachute or not....


GravatarChelabi has been dumped and Bush is wooing the Sunni. He's instructed Brahimi to organize a Sunni-oriented emergency peace conference in Cairo in May, before handover.

IraqWar wasn't a crusade--it's a doublecross!


GravatarSomeone mentioned earlier that Chalabi might try gaining some influence with the Shias. Ain't going to happen, as long as al-Sadr and the Mehdi are around.

Let's put it this way, if you were a Shia and you only had two choices of supporting who was going to lead your people, would you choose the well-coifed, cut-and-run scam artist who just came in when Saddam's regime fell or the hardened zealot who grew up there all of his life, saw his father die by Saddam's hands, and is willing to die for his beliefs?


GravatarNo reason to celebrate Chalabi's downfall. It means Plan A has failed, but there is no Plan B. I agree with Susan that this is actually a sign of how very, very, very bad things are in Iraq.


GravatarSomeone mentioned earlier that Chalabi might try gaining some influence with the Shias. Ain't going to happen, as long as al-Sadr and the Mehdi are around.

Al-Sadr is essentially powerless without the backing of al-Sistani.
Sistani calls the Shi'a shots. So far he hasn't come down hard on al-Sadr.

But Chalabi and Sistani have already had their talks (in July of 2003). Who knows what they agreed on? But Sistani started objecting to the US plan for indirect elections immediately after the talks with Chalabi. I don't know what it means, but I doubt that it means that Chalabi is without influence with Sistani.


GravatarA useful idiot who is no longer useful. But he probably knows more than smirkers would like. He'll probably run over a land mine.


GravatarShut up. We are at war. You liberals know nothing, and Bash Bush for no reason other than your envy at his huge success. Your liberal lies are not being heard and are nay laughed at in the heartland. You pesky, class warring commie enablers are finsihed as a new age of prosperity makes all your pettiness more pathetic.


GravatarShut up. We are at war. You Amerikan liberals know nothing, and Bash Hitler for no reason other than your envy at his huge success. Your liberal lies are not being heard and are nay laughed at in the heartland. You pesky, class warring commie enablers are finsihed as a new age of prosperity and racial purity makes all your pettiness more pathetic.


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