so it appears that the u.s. and prime minister maliki have negotiated an extension to the u.s. mandate to operate in iraq. as i explained earlier in the month, under iraqi law maliki's agreement isn't valid unless it is ratified by the iraqi parliament, something it is almost certain not to do.
i expect both the u.s. and maliki will ignore iraqi law and the iraqi constitution and pretend that their agreement is valid. it all comes down to whether the iraqi MPs are able to get their message out that under iraqi law the u.s. has to leave iraq by the end of the year. somehow i doubt they will be able to pull it off. it won't even occur to the u.s. media to look into it.
