Iraq PM al-Maliki: the new U.S. position is just an election ploy

[sabra]

http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/news_theswamp/2006/10/bush_undercut_b.html#more

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"I am positive that this is not the official policy of the American government but rather a result of the ongoing election campaign. And that does not concern us much," al-Maliki said on Wednesday, the AP reports.

It's always possible that al-Maliki may have said this purely for domestic consumption to demonstrate his independence from the U.S. and that he privately intends to actually impose metrics of progress on his government.

But even if that is the case, it doesn't help Bush that his Iraqi ally is saying the same thing as his party's Democratic opponents during a hard-fought mid-term election season. For instance, Sen. John Kerry (dD-Mass.,) Bush's 2004 challenger for the White House, said in a statement yesterday:

Today’s performance was another attempt two weeks before an election to convince the American people he has a plan for Iraq. But the President can’t sell what he doesn’t have. One day President Bush invites comparisons to Vietnam, the next day Vice President Cheney says Iraq is going remarkably well, and every day the civil war intensifies and young Americans continue to die.

[wholetruth00]

1. He's much smarter than most Americans who vote. If he can see it why

can't the American voters?