Bush: Probing for a Solution in Iraq

It's interesting, to say the least, that the president has decided to do an intensive review of where we are in Iraq. Obviously, the report of the Iraq Study Group–a political gift to the president–has inspired the White House to do some thinking, and that's a great idea. (Why it hasn't been done before is the mystery.) And it's also smart that the president not rush into any national speech without studying all his options, so today's announcement that there won't be any Christmas fireside chat is fine.

"It's not ready yet," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. Fair enough.

My sources tell me that the president has become the great questioner, while publicly he still talks about the path to "victory," whatever that is. But privately, I'm told, "The main thing is that the president is asking more questions," says a source. "If you send more [troops], what is the mission? Is it to free up confident Iraqis who can help, or to take on the militias, or to take on different areas? This requires a lot of thought and input."

What's more, this source adds, "Who do we send? Some say the special operations guys are the most qualified. . . . And what needs to be provided to the trainers? How long will it take to train the trainers?"

The fact that these discussions are ongoing is a good thing, and for that we can applaud the Iraq Study Group. If nothing else, these folks provided the proverbial wake-up call for the White House. That, combined with poll numbers–showing that Americans are completely pessimistic about the war and the way the president is leading it–did clearly present a hard dose of reality. And now, the president finds himself asking the question the public has been asking for a long time: What next?