The true grit of this president

The president has assailed his rivals for wanting to "cut and run". If this report in the Financial Times is accurate, his administration is far more inscrutable and insincere than can be imagined:

The Bush administration is pressing the Iraqi government of Nouri al-Maliki to issue a “broad” and “painful” amnesty for insurgents in spite of intense opposition to the proposal from politicians both in Iraq and the US, according to a senior administration official.

Amid growing anxiety in Washington over Iraq’s escalating sectarian violence, the US is advocating more determined moves towards a national reconciliation with the Sunni community that dominates Iraq’s insurgency. It also wants a tougher line on the Shia militias.

“You need the government to move forward with a programme – it should include an amnesty in a broad fashion, a comprehensive amnesty proposal,” the senior US official, who asked not to be named, told the Financial Times. The official was not explicit about the terms of the proposed amnesty, but he said: “No successful amnesty is not painful or sweeping.”