A Small But Powerful Group

There was big news last week about the White House's failed search (thus far) for a fall guy war czar for the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Washington Post spoke with several people who turned down the position, including retired Marine Gen. John Sheehan (who said that the "very fundamental issue is, they don't know where the hell they're going").

Gen. Sheehan has an op-ed in the Post now explaining his decision.

Money quote from the end: "I concluded that the current Washington decision-making process lacks a linkage to a broader view of the region and how the parts fit together strategically. We got it right during the early days of Afghanistan -- and then lost focus. We have never gotten it right in Iraq. For these reasons, I asked not to be considered for this important White House position. These huge shortcomings are not going to be resolved by the assignment of an additional individual to the White House staff. They need to be addressed before an implementation manager is brought on board."

And there are a lot of foolish pundits still expecting that to happen. It won't. Is it 2009 yet?