The White House's line on Haditha is that Bush first learned about the killings from a Time reporter:
Q When was the President first briefed about the events in Haditha?
MR. SNOW: When a Time reporter first made the call. Time began asking questions about it. He was briefed by Steve Hadley at the time and began asking questions then. (White House dot Guv)
After the intense scrutiny of atrocities at Abu Ghraib, the the White House's not being informed about a massacre of 24 civilians seems highly unlikely unless there was a military coverup. On the other hand, if word about Haditha did reach the White House and Snow is lying, does that not mean that the White House is trying to cover up something now?
The third possibility is perhaps equally chilling: That there was not a coverup of the massacre and the military never informed the White House. If that is the case, what does that say about what information about the Iraq War reaches the White House? It suggests that only the good news is filtered through. And based on good news alone, the commander-in-chief is incapable of developing an effective strategy in Iraq.