Reid's diplomatic surge

I've been listening to C-Span a lot lately - and while the men and women of our congress are not always the most captivating orators, the content has been mighty interesting lately.

For example, I happened to catch Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid speak on Iraq yesterday. You can read the transcript here. He talks a great game:

We need a surge in diplomacy to bring warring factions to the negotiating table. And we need a surge in accountability, to compel the Iraqi people to take responsibility for their own destiny. The destiny of their own country...

Our first step immediately transitions the U.S. mission away from policing a civil war-- to training and equipping Iraqi security forces, protecting U.S. forces and conducting targeted counter-terror operations.

This transitions our mission to one that is aligned with U.S. strategic interests, while at the same time, reducing our combat footprint. U.S. troops should not be interjecting themselves between warring factions, kicking down doors, trying to sort Shia from Sunni or friend from foe.

Our second step calls for beginning the phased redeployment of our troops no later than October 1, 2007 with a goal of removing all combat forces by April 1, 2008, except for those carrying out the limited missions I just mentioned."

Now, let's see if Reid can walk a good game, too...