Back from Iraq, Pelosi wants withdrawal now more than evah

Who could have seen this coming? Except me, you, Congress, the left- and right-wing blogospheres, the media, and the entirety of the American electorate?

It seems like Iraq is little more than a political Rorschach test for the politicians and journalists who visit it. Has anyone from either side come back with an opinion about whether or not it’s winnable that’s markedly different from the one they left with? Frist came close, but that was Afghanistan he wanted to surrender, not Mesopotamia.

Three days in Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan have made House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even more certain of her view that moving troops out of Iraq is the best way to bring stability to the region, she told The Chronicle on Sunday…

“We owe them better policy. We owe them better initiatives,” Pelosi said after meeting the past three days with scores of U.S. troops and military commanders, as well as the top political leader in each of the three countries. “I believe redeployment of our troops is a step toward stability in the region.”…

She said she told al-Maliki what she has said repeatedly at home for many months — that there must be political and diplomatic initiatives to match the military effort, and there are disappointingly few signs of such successes…

Pelosi and Senate Leader Harry Reid of Nevada have sent Bush several public letters urging a new Iraq policy that would redeploy troops and shift the emphasis from combat to training and reconstruction.

“Sadly, there was nothing that we saw there that would say that the plan we have been proposing should be changed,” Pelosi said of her visit.

The most centrist person I know who’s been there is INDC Bill, and he told me yesterday that he’s sure the war is still winnable provided we change the rules of engagement. He’s got a good dozen posts in the pipe, but I suspect that’ll be the first one up. Keep your eyes peeled for it.

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