Well, give Bush credit: He hasn't just lied persistently about a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda -- apparently he's actually goaded Osama bin Laden into endorsing the notion that such a link exists (at least now). It's interesting: Here was the Bush administration sending out Rice, Ashcroft, and Bush himself to speak in public in the past week or so, and the utterance that provides the biggest endorsement of Bush policies (and gives the biggest boost to the Bush reelection campaign) is this audiotape reportedly from Osama, which is stiffening spines across Europe and will lead to dozens of self-righteous "appeasement"-bashing op-ed pieces from right-wing pundits. The Bushies aren't as dumb as they look, apparently. (All this assumes, of course, that the tape is genuine.)

Here's a thought: What if the Bush Iraq policy isn't failing? What if what seems like chaos is exactly what the Bushies want? Think about it: Maybe they want Iraq to be an anarchic hellhole -- maybe they want it to turn into the classic failed state. Remember that the failed states of Afghanistan and Sudan were congenial hosts to Al Qaeda. Maybe the Bushies hope that if they can get Iraq to deteriorate enough, Al Qaeda will pack up and resettle there -- the ultimate vindication of the "flypaper theory," and retrospective "proof" that Iraq always was the central front in the war on terror.