by Nicholas Beaudrot of Electoral Math
Via Steve Clemons, Nir Rosen seems to have it right: "First of all, the Iraqi government doesn't matter." Changing the names that go alongside titles in the Iraqi government will do very little, since at this point the government has no legitimacy with the average Iraqi on the streets and is not providing them with any security, electricity, or ... well ... anything. The question at this point is how to salvage a "least bad" outcome, which is going to mean the US must be willing to work with the leaders who do have legitimacy on the streets of Kirkuk, Mosul, and elsewhere. This isn't something that can really be done solely by career military and civil service professionals; politically appointed principals will have to get involved to show the rest of the Middle East and the Iraqi public that they care enough to try to make a difference.
