The Phantom Deadline

I watched Condoleeza Rice on Fox News Sunday and Meet the Press this morning. She is always fantastic at presenting herself in public. She declined several opportunities to state a specific date for the end of the "diplomatic window" that we are in. Russert in particular was hung up on 14 March (apparently the due date for another report from the inspectors) as an important date. Dr. Rice would not ascribe any significance to that date or to the report. As an optimist, I take that to be a sign that we will be at war with or without UN approval before then. I suspect that pessimists will assume that her circumspection means that we intend to dither past that date.