We know political pressure building on ending the war in Iraq could cause Bush to attack Iran. He will not allow Congress to force him to admit the fact that he has failed. My bet is he will order an attack before Sept. 15 – before the Petraus report is likely to further increase political opposition to the Iraq War.



More to the grim report:

Last year Mr Bush came down in favour of Ms Rice, who along with Britain, France and Germany has been putting a diplomatic squeeze on Iran. But at a meeting of the White House, Pentagon and state department last month, Mr Cheney expressed frustration at the lack of progress and Mr Bush sided with him. "The balance has tilted. There is cause for concern," the source said this week.

There is a powerful, toxic cocktail in the White House. It’s one part Cheney, the terrible tyrant who does not believe in this Republic and does not accept facts that conflict with the warmongering outcome he wishes to impose on us peasants.

It’s also one part Decider – deciding from the options Cheney’s already decided on. And the sociopathic, narcissistic Decider will never admit failure. This is the truly scary part - he’s trapped and can never face the failure he in fact is.

The drumbeats to war have been growing louder for the past several months. On of the early reports to warn about this was posted by Steve Clemons on May 24, 2007. He wrote at that time:

Multiple sources have reported that a senior aide on Vice President Cheney's national security team has been meeting with policy hands of the American Enterprise Institute, one other think tank, and more than one national security consulting house and explicitly stating that Vice President Cheney does not support President Bush's tack towards Condoleezza Rice's diplomatic efforts and fears that the President is taking diplomacy with Iran too seriously. This White House official has stated to several Washington insiders that Cheney is planning to deploy an "end run strategy" around the President if he and his team lose the policy argument. The thinking on Cheney's team is to collude with Israel, nudging Israel at some key moment in the ongoing standoff between Iran's nuclear activities and international frustration over this to mount a small-scale conventional strike against Natanz using cruise missiles (i.e., not ballistic missiles).

If the Guardian report is accurate, then it looks like Cheney's end run is just about 'mission accomplished'. The exposure of Cheney’s evil machinations seems to have in no way constrained his subterfuge. And the Senate votes 97-0......Mark my word that will be in the first line in Bush's speech justifying the sneak attack on Iran.

Are we powerless to stop a war with Iran?

Link:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/...

Link to an earlier diary that has some of the reported facts that indicate we may go to war with Iran:

http://www.dailykos.com/...