My take is that Maliki reads the opinion polls in the United States. Because Barack Obama is ahead, and President Bush is a lame-duck, and Obama is about to visit perhaps (who knows), Maliki feels now is the moment to stand up to the proposed occupation and insist upon an American withdrawal roughly in accord with Obama's plan.

McCain can't say the war is intended to lead to an occupation. He can't say the Iraqis shouldn't stand up and so we shouldn't stand down. He can't say anything useful. He can say that the surge worked, and he is saying that, but it's Obama, not McCain, that Maliki is agreeing with.

Back at home, McCain has no plan for the economy. He fired Gramm, who had no plan for him, and also insulted the American people. But he still has no plan; his own record on the economy is a long litany of rejection of a useful role for government. But now everyone in America sees that the Republicans stand for government intervention, although not for everyone and long after the right moment. So where does that leave McCain? Same place Maliki has left him -- everyone agrees with Obama now, whether they admit or not, on the economy and on Iraq.

By the way, everyone agrees with Obama on Iran too, since apparently we are moving to opening dialogue with that particular component of the axis of evil.