Maliki and Bush

There are all sorts of speculation as to the reasons why the meeting between Maliki and Bush was cancelled. There are the soft diplomatic fabrications, which include:

* "No one should read too much into this," said Dan Bartlett, Bush adviser.
* The incredulous, " al-Maliki and Jordan's King Abdullah II had decided mutually that a three-way conversation was not necessary because the Jordanian and Iraqi leaders had met earlier in the day." ; This from Bush staffers.
* A Jordanian source said Abdullah and Bush met longer than expected because of Palestinian issues and had to cancel the meeting with al-Maliki.
* al-Maliki needed the delay, which was requested by Abdullah, for political advantage to calm the al-Sadr movement.

There are no questions that tensions have been rising between the Maliki Government and the Bush Administration. The leaked Nov. 8 memo by National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, hinted at such..."His intentions seem good when he talks with Americans, and sensitive reporting suggests he is trying to stand up to the Shia hierarchy and force positive change," the memo says of al-Maliki, text posted on The New York Times' Web site. "But the reality ... suggests Maliki is either ignorant of what is going on, misrepresenting his intentions, or that his capabilities are not yet sufficient to turn his good intentions into action."

That is not what you want to read about yourself over your morning coffee. I believe there is another reason. On June 13, 2006, you will recall that President Bush made a surprise visit to Baghdad to visit Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki. The photographs and videos of the meeting show Maliki having a real WTF moment.

Bush met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his Cabinet, and pledged his full support behind the newly formed government.

Bush stayed in Iraq for less than six hours and caught everyone by surprise, especially Maliki who reportedly had five minutes' notice that President Bush was in the Green Zone. That in itself was embarrassing and humiliating to the Iraqis, who after all are politicians and egoists.

So let's review the bidding. A surprise visit from Bush where he pledges undying support and the next meeting where Maliki is surprised to hear Bush no longer loves him.

Maliki must be thinking, " Mr. President, we have to stop meeting like this."

POST SCRIPT:

They met this morning. Mr. Maliki had some inspiring and forceful words:

"We are very clear together about the importance of accelerating the transfer of the security responsibility.''

Maliki said all political factions in Iraq have a responsibility to respect the law and that he wouldn't allow neighboring countries to interfere with affairs inside Iraq.

"Those who participate in this government need to bear responsibilities,'' Maliki said.

"This should apply to all the partners of the government who have chosen to participate in the political process.''