Cheney: So 20 Minutes Ago

Is Vice President Cheney old news? Even as a major Post series continues to authoritatively document Cheney's staggering clout within the Bush White House, there are signs that he and his supposed boss have lost control of the Washington agenda when it comes to their principal legacy: the war in Iraq.

As much as Cheney and President Bush would like to keep talking about how to win, that's not a scenario serious policymakers are contemplating.

E. J. Dionne Jr. explains in his Washington Post opinion column this morning: "Quietly, the real debate over Iraq is beginning.

"It's not about whether the United States should pull out troops. That is now inevitable. The real challenge is to figure out the right timetable for withdrawal, whether a residual force should be left there and which American objectives can still be salvaged."

Dionne cites two new reports on Iraq. One, from the Center for a New American Security,"suggests reducing the American presence in Iraq by 100,000 troops between now and the beginning of 2009. But it would keep 60,000 troops in Iraq for four years beyond that."

The other, from the Center for American Progress"would have all American troops out of Iraq before the end of 2008, except for a force of 8,000 to 10,000 in the Kurdish area for an additional year. . . .

"Up to now, the administration has insisted that the only question in the Iraq debate is whether to withdraw. These two reports lay out the parameters for the argument we need now: how to end a disastrous war in a way that best serves America's long-term interests. The president would be better served if he entered the new debate. If he ignores it, it will pass him by."

Dionne's column comes as the White House is reeling from a major defection from its position on Iraq.

Anne Flaherty reports for the Associated Press: "Sen. Richard Lugar, a senior Republican and a reliable vote for President Bush on the war, said that Bush's Iraq strategy was not working and that the U.S. should downsize the military's role.

"The unusually blunt assessment Monday deals a political blow to Bush, who has relied heavily on GOP support to stave off anti-war legislation."

From Lugar's floor speech: "Those who offer constructive criticism of the surge strategy are not defeatists, any more than those who warn against a precipitous withdrawal are militarists. We need to move Iraq policy beyond the politics of the moment and re-establish a broad consensus on the role of the United States in the Middle East. If we do that, the United States has the diplomatic influence and economic and military power to strengthen mutually beneficial policies that could enhance security and prosperity throughout the region. I pray that the President and the Congress will move swiftly and surely to achieve that goal."

And here are some more data points: Anthony H. Cordesman of the Center for Strategic & International Studies is warning of the "obvious risk that the US will simply end up playing 'Whack a mole' on a steadily rising scale."