Maliki's bubble
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has said this to the BBC: "The Iraqi security forces are actually leading battles, and at the end of the year you will witness major progress in Iraqis being independent and not needing foreign troops."
And this: "There is a sectarian issue, but the political leaders have succeeded and they are working on putting an end to the sectarian issue."
And this: "We are confident that we will confront terrorism and the violence that is in Iraq."
And this: "They are able to accommodate and persevere. There are signs of victory and Iraqis will still be patient and will stay with us until victory is achieved."
Sounds like he's getting all the latest talking points from Bush's bubble in the West Wing. I'm sure he knows much more than I do about what's going on in Iraq, but his optimism heading into meetings with Bush and Blair seems forced, as if he's just saying what those two want to hear.
I, too, would like to see foreign troops leave Iraq, when the time is right, but Maliki's vision of Iraq's present and near-future seems to be a fantasy. I wonder if the White House sent along some rose-coloured glasses with the talking points.
And this: "There is a sectarian issue, but the political leaders have succeeded and they are working on putting an end to the sectarian issue."
And this: "We are confident that we will confront terrorism and the violence that is in Iraq."
And this: "They are able to accommodate and persevere. There are signs of victory and Iraqis will still be patient and will stay with us until victory is achieved."
Sounds like he's getting all the latest talking points from Bush's bubble in the West Wing. I'm sure he knows much more than I do about what's going on in Iraq, but his optimism heading into meetings with Bush and Blair seems forced, as if he's just saying what those two want to hear.
I, too, would like to see foreign troops leave Iraq, when the time is right, but Maliki's vision of Iraq's present and near-future seems to be a fantasy. I wonder if the White House sent along some rose-coloured glasses with the talking points.
posted by Michael J.W. Stickings at
6:47 AM
3 Comments:
Or perhaps they sent him a script to memorize. When George told Vladimir this last week that Iraq had freedom of the press and "free religion" and that Russia should be like Iraq, it became impossible to believe in this man's grasp on reality.
By
Capt. Fogg, at 11:55 AM
I would say it became impossible a long, long time ago.
By
Michael J.W. Stickings, at 4:53 PM
Why do you assume that what the prime minister says in public is the same thing as what he tells the President in private? It is entirely appropriate to speak optimistically in public and deliver a blunter message in private.
--PatHMV
By
PatHMV, at 12:13 AM
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