Sea Change

The Washington Post reports today on a meeting of the Republican guard called by the president in hopes of winning back his base on the eve of the big speech.

President Bush yesterday began promoting his plan to send more troops to Iraq, bringing more than 30 Republican senators to the White House as part of a major campaign to rally the American people behind another effort to stabilize the country.

Senators who met with Bush said the president made it clear that he is planning to add as many as 20,000 U.S. troops to help quell violence in Baghdad. They also said the president is arguing that his new plan has a better chance for success than past plans because of a greater willingness of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to commit Iraqi forces against all perpetrators of violence, including Shiite militias. [...]

Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) said the president was asked during her meeting what would be different about his new plan, and he replied that Maliki has had a "sea change" in attitude. But she said she came away unconvinced. [jaw on the floor emphasis mine]

20,000 more American troops based on word of Nouri al-Maliki. This is the president's selling point? This is the end result of two months of listening and stalling? Everything will be different because al-Maliki says so. This is beyond the last straw.

Sigh more.