Don't think Bush is going to walk away from those oil fields without nailing down the 1) oil company deals; 2) security for the fields; 3) security to build the permanent military bases; etc. etc.
So of course he blames Al Qaeda....why not? They're a convenient boogeyman...but it's the oil, stupid. That's the 'mission' he's referring to in this latest statement RIGA, Latvia - Under intense pressure to change course, President Bush on Tuesday rejected suggestions I Iraq has fallen into civil war and vowed not to pull U.S. troops out "until the mission is complete."
From Andrew Sullivan:
I don't know the backstory for Philip Zelikow's departure from the State Department but it seems to me that those of us who assumed that the election and the demise of Rumsfeld meant a change of course for the Bush administration may be fooling ourselves. Mike Allen's report on Bush's tude is here. The president today seemed to argue that the violence in Iraq is caused by al Qaeda. He's right that this sectarian warfare was part of al Qaeda's strategy - but it now has a life of its own. It's troubling he seems unaware of this, or under the impression that Maliki is part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Maybe he is still in denial. And maybe it's that realization that has prompted Zelikow to throw in the towel.
