Arthur:

"And about the secrecy surrounding this latest "trick play": Bush didn't even tell the Iraqi government that he was coming! Al-Maliki didn't know about Bush's arrival until five minutes before he met with him. Well, it's not like Iraq is a sovereign nation or anything. Think more along the lines of the imperial governor visiting the far-flung provinces. Nifty. And so American, too! I'm sure the founders are immensely pleased....read on"