Lowering expectations
What’s going to happen in September? Well, according to Gen Petraeus, he’ll give a report to Congress and then go back to war (hat-tip to Sully, who has apparently given up sleeping in favour of reading news and blogging 24 hours a day).
“That is a deadline for a report not a deadline for a change in policy, at least not that I am aware of. Ambassador Crocker and I intend to go back and provide a snapshot at that time, however focused the photograph is at that time and begin to describe what has been achieved and what has not been achieved and also to provide some sense of implications of courses of action. Neither of us is under any illusion.”
Well, he can say that, but politicians from both sides have been building up to something significant in September (although Brad, probably rightly, doesn’t expect a sudden sea-change in Republican lawmakers’ Iraq behaviour then, it’s looking at least like a watershed). It appears to me pretty much as if Petraeus is planning on only being able to give mediocre to bad news in September and wishes to lower expectatations (expectations he raised himself).
If it is mediocre news in September and there is a further brouhaha in Congress in September, particularly if candidates for presidential nominations take stands, I think that McCain could be in deep trouble (deeper than he is in now and leaving the resurgent Immigration Bill aside).