Plan B: Another Friedman Unit for Plan A?

Headline from today's edition of the WaPo's "The Talk" column, featuring highlights from the Sunday talking heads: May 6: GOP could seek "Plan B" on Iraq in Sept.

The leader of House Republicans said today that his members would begin to seek another strategy in Iraq in September, should President Bush's troop "surge" strategy clearly not be working by then. But he pledged that his caucus would stand firm against any Democratic timetable or benchmarks that mandate the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Just for the record, here's Boehner being questioned on Meet the Press back on Feb. 11:

MR. RUSSERT: Now, you said last week, "I think it will be rather clear in the next 60 to 90 days as to whether this plan is going to work." If, after 90 days, Baghdad is not stabilized, will you then say it hasn’t worked, let’s start coming home?

REP. BOEHNER: Well, General Petraeus, in his Senate confirmation, said that we probably would know by late summer how well the plan is working. It’s one of the reasons why we want to offer a resolution that makes it clear that we ought to have a bipartisan panel overseeing this plan, and we outline a series of benchmarks to see how well we’re doing. This plan is, is heavily dependent on the Iraqis stepping up and taking more responsibility for their own country. And I think that having these benchmarks and being able to follow the progress is very important.

More than a little bit slippery, wouldn't you say? So Tim puts it to him as straight as possible:

MR. RUSSERT: But it has—if it hasn’t worked in 90 days, will you then go to the president and say it hasn’t worked?

REP. BOEHNER: I, I would, I would say over the next 60 to 90 days we’ll have some idea how well we’re meeting those benchmarks, the progress towards them. But General Petraeus is, is, is the commander on the ground. He’s the one who says by the end of the summer we ought to have a clear idea how well it’s working.

Well, it's been 84 days since Boehner told Russert he'd go to the president and say it hasn't worked. And it's actually been 92 days since Boehner said we'd know in 90 days.

So what does Boehner say today?

"We don't even have all of the 30,000 additional troops in Iraq yet. And so we're supporting the president. ... By the time we get to September, October, members are going to want to know how well this is working, and if it isn't,what's Plan B," Minority Leader John Boehner (Ohio) said on "Fox News Sunday."

September? October? What's that? 120-150 days from now? That's 120-150 days after the end of the 90 days Boehner said it would take?

These guys aren't serious. Is anyone really counting on their "mass defection" after the summer?

I mean, it's suicide if they don't jump ship. If you're "reality-based," that is.

Uh-oh.