Bush Losing Control of Agenda

"[C]ontrary to Bush's conciliatory attitude in the days after the election, the president sounded as defiant Thursday as he did on the campaign trail -- even arguing that pulling out U.S. troops 'would only embolden terrorists.'"

Wallsten and Moore also solemnly chronicle some of the violence that was taking place in Iraq during the short summit:

"Iraqi soldiers found the remains of at least 28 people, apparently recent death squad victims, south of Baqubah on Thursday, according to the U.S. military and Iraqi police.

"In Baghdad, nine bodies were found, all shot execution-style and showing signs of torture, and at least 23 people were killed in clashes and bomb attacks."

And so on.

Middle East Reaction

Hassan M. Fattah writes in the New York Times that "as the summit meeting between President Bush and Prime Minister Kamal Nuri al-Maliki of Iraq concluded Thursday morning, the Arab world was left dumbfounded that nothing had come of it. . . .

"'I did not see a coherent strategy that really deals with the situation,' [said Abdel Moneim Said, director of the Ahram Center for Strategic Studies in Cairo]. 'I did not see Bush realizing how bad it is.' . . .

"Mr. Bush sought to counter rumors of tensions with Mr. Maliki, calling him 'the right guy for Iraq' while emphasizing his role as the leader of a sovereign nation. 'He has shown courage in the last six months,' Mr. Bush said.

"Yet many Arab analysts saw Mr. Bush as managing Mr. Maliki. At one point he encouraged Mr. Maliki to call on members of the Iraqi news media and told him 'good job!' as the news conference drew to a close."

Kirk Semple writes in the New York Times that "dismay was common among Iraqis who managed to follow the news on Thursday. So was a range of other emotions that probably would not hearten Mr. Maliki or Mr. Bush, including disappointment, indifference and despair.

"For many, the talks promised little and delivered less and reaffirmed a widespread loss of faith in the elected government's ability to turn things around."

A Good Leak?

How enthusiastic is the Bush Administration about investigating the leak of Hadley's classified memo to the New York Times? Not a bit -- adding credence to the suspicion that the leak was authorized at a high level. ( Thomas M. DeFrank wrote in the New York Daily News that some fingers are pointing to the vice president's office, among others.)