On Monday I will meet with my national security team and other key members of my Cabinet at Camp David to discuss the way forward in Iraq. Our top diplomats and military commanders in Iraq will give me an assessment of recent changes in the political and economic and security situation on the ground. On Tuesday, Iraq's new Ambassador to the United States will join us, and we will have a teleconference discussion with the Prime Minister and members of his cabinet. Together we will discuss how to best deploy America's resources in Iraq and achieve our shared goal of an Iraq that can govern itself, defend itself and sustain itself.Emphasis mine.
On the surface, this is "non-news" about the Prsident's travel/meeting plans; the sort of stuff Tony Snow gives the press every day. But, the timing and the fact that Bush himself chose to talk about these meetings makes me wonder if there is not something more behind these meetings than meets the eye: Zarqawi dead, a fully manned Iraqi government finally in place, the upcoming US mid-term elections (with the popularity of both the war and Republicans at an all time low) on the horizon; a significant potential that the Dems could get that one thing that Bush fears most, the power of the subpoena?
In this context, it seems just possible that Bush and his boys have figured out that there is likely to be no better time to "declare victory" and begin the process of drawing down our troop strength in Iraq. Could it bee that the real purpose of the planning meeting on Monday is to figure out how to do this? Could it be that the purpose of the videoconference with Maliki on Tuesday is to tell him he better get his house in order becuase the Americans are on their way home?
Probably not. But, for one who has argued for some time that we will see a significant reduction on current troop strength in Iraq, it is an intriguing possibility.
Problem is, I don't really know whether to hope I am right or wrong.
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