NOW THAT THE IRAQ WAR IS NEARLY OVER:

U.S. official to Israel: We'll deal with Syria, Iran after Iraq war (Aluf Benn and Sharon Sadeh, 2/17/03, Haaretz)

U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton said in meetings with Israeli officials on Monday that he has no doubt America will attack Iraq, and that it will be necessary to deal with threats from Syria, Iran and North Korea afterwards.

Bolton, who is undersecretary for arms control and international security, is in Israel for meetings about preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

In a meeting with Bolton on Monday, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that Israel is concerned about the security threat posed by Iran. It's important to deal with Iran even while American attention is turned toward Iraq, Sharon said.

Bolton also met with Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Housing and Construction Minister Natan Sharansky.

It's no surprise that Democrats and Europeans haven't figured this out yet, but it's disappointing that so many conservatives remain so dim. The same folks who still think that George W. Bush is a protectionist because of the steel tariffs have now convinced themselves that he's wobbly because Saddam isn't gone yet. Conservatives are supposed to be the adults here, not petulant children like the liberals. What gives? Posted by Orrin Judd at February 17, 2003 7:36 PM