Shorter Bush administration: "Hang on ... we have another plan."
AFTERSNARK: So how's that candidate search working out? (all emphasis added)
The White House wants to appoint a high-powered czar to oversee the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with authority to issue directions to the Pentagon, the State Department and other agencies, but it has had trouble finding anyone able and willing to take the job, according to people close to the situation.
At least three retired four-star generals approached by the White House in recent weeks have declined to be considered for the position, the sources said, underscoring the administration's difficulty in enlisting its top recruits to join the team after five years of warfare that have taxed the United States and its military.
A bit odd, that reluctance. What's the problem? Ah, here we go:
Unlike O'Sullivan, the new czar would report directly to Bush ...
And why would that be an issue? Oh ... right:
The debate over sending more U.S. troops to Iraq intensified yesterday as President Bush signaled that he will listen but not necessarily defer to balky military officers, ...
Yeah, that kind of takes the sheen off of that shiny new position, don't it?
OOOOOH ... GOOD POINT: John at AmericaBlog brings up some awkward constitutional issues with this whole "war czar" idea.
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