One presidential candidate has long advocated a different approach to Iraq war policy, Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del). With the elections looming, pressure is building on The Decider to look at policy options.... "Bush aides consider Iraq truce at Capitol." (LATimes)
".... some senior administration officials - including Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad - have been quietly talking with lawmakers about how to adjust policy in the months ahead. Among other ideas, they have discussed whether the United States should advocate a sharply decentralized Iraq, a notion that has seen a resurgence on Capitol Hill."
"A sharply decentralized Iraq" .... called a federal system of government.... is what Biden has been advocating. Proponents of this idea, which is favored by an unusually broad bipartisan group of senators, were brought together this month by Biden, who is the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee.
On a recent trip to Iraq, Gates reflected that "Perhaps we have gotten too focused on the central government, and not enough on the provinces and on the tribes and what is happening in those areas."
Now, we'll see if a childish Decider can climb down from his Iraq-policy hobby horse and listen to the grownups.
Don't hold your breath.
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