For my very first diary, I was hoping to craft something unique, prosaic, and out of the ordinary. Certainly I've been thinking about what I would want to write for a very long time.
But the story linked below from Think Progress that appeared this morning precludes any dreams I had of a charming yet incisive first diary entry. This is blunt and raw and I have to just get it out to all of you because so far it is NOT getting enough play in the mainstream or alternative media.
This story serves as yet another confirmation of my worst and wildest fears about the Bush Administration. That they would blatantly, mercilessly, and despicably tie military efforts DIRECTLY to domestic political needs. More below the fold.
Think Progress is reporting that in an interview with Iraqi television, Nuri al-Maliki insinuated that he was pressured to adjust his demands for troop withdrawals by the Bush administration in order to help John McCain's campaign.
A source tells ThinkProgress that White House communications staff were concerned that Maliki’s endorsement of the 2010 time line would damage Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) presidential campaign. Indeed, during an interview with Iraqi television last week (according to an Open Source Center translation), Maliki suggested that the U.S. presidential elections played a role...
Perhaps this ultimately will be debunked, chalked up to poor translation, or some other kind of excuse. But as a scientist I must acknowledge Occum's Razor to remind the audience here that the best explanation of a phenomenon also is the most parsimonious. And in my read of how the Bush administration has conducted itself for the past eight years, this new revelation about political needs trumping military needs comes as absolutely no surprise and dovetails perfectly with the Machiavellian travesties we've seen emanating from the Whitehouse.