… won’t be written by Petraeus and Crocker, but by the WH spin doctors.
Why was this bombshell in the 30th paragraph of the story in the LA Times?
… won’t actually be by Petraeus and Crocker. It will be prepared by the wonderful people who brought you the sixteen words:
Despite Bush’s repeated statements that the report will reflect evaluations by Petraeus and Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, administration officials said it would actually be written by the White House, with inputs from officials throughout the government.
That is to say, don’t believe a word of it.
It’s possible that the “Petraeus report” was imaginary from the get-go. But it’s also possible that Petraeus isn’t willing to put his signature on a report as optimistic as BushCo demands.
The biggest single question left open by the LA Times story is: Why was this bombshell in the 30th graf?
h/t: Kevin Drum
Author: Mark Kleiman
Professor of Public Policy at the NYU Marron Institute for Urban Management and editor of the Journal of Drug Policy Analysis. Teaches about the methods of policy analysis about drug abuse control and crime control policy, working out the implications of two principles: that swift and certain sanctions don't have to be severe to be effective, and that well-designed threats usually don't have to be carried out.
Books:
Drugs and Drug Policy: What Everyone Needs to Know (with Jonathan Caulkins and Angela Hawken)
When Brute Force Fails: How to Have Less Crime and Less Punishment (Princeton, 2009; named one of the "books of the year" by The Economist
Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results (Basic, 1993)
Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control (Greenwood, 1989)
UCLA Homepage
Curriculum Vitae
Contact: Markarkleiman-at-gmail.com
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