Allawi lobbying

I've been enjoying the exposure of Iyad Allawi's contracts with DC consultants, which Iraqslogger uncovered and got into the mainstream media.  It really shouldn't be all that surprising - Allawi has always been about foreign support, not a domestic political base.  The idea that the road to power in Baghdad lies through DC lobbyists is not a particularly strange one, especially given the experience of Iraqi exile politicians in 2002-2003.  It's also worth noting that Allawi's bid for a return to power is nothing new - his candidacy has been pushed by the Saudis and other Arab states, and by some Americans since last fall.  I warned about this Allawi gambit back in March: 

Will Iyad Allawi, the rotund one-time Iraqi Prime Minister and current London resident, be the next Prime Minister of Iraq? He certainly seems to want the job, and he suits the Bush administration's agenda suspiciously well. But his return to power would not only fail to end the civil war - it would also signal a decisive end to democratic aspirations in Iraq and the Arab world, increase America's role at a time when most Americans would prefer to leave, and pave the way to a confrontation with Iran.

I think that analysis from the spring holds up pretty well, for better or for worse.  Allawi would not solve any of America's problems in Iraq, and - as several people have pointed out - he'd have a rough time getting a change of government through Parliament or taking control of an Iraqi state thoroughly penetrated and controlled by pro-Iranian Shia factions.  But he represents an easy out for those who want to blame Maliki for problems which really flow from the nature of the Iraqi state, and an excuse to kick the can down the road for another year.   What makes Allawi plausible is the absence of any other serious contenders to rule Iraq - which is, perhaps, the real indictment of the Iraqi political system. 

Comments

[Nur al-Cubicle]

Hasn't Allawi's shelf life expired? And isn't he the most hated man in Iraq?

[Zathras]

I can understand the appeal outside Iraq of an aspiring political leader who consorts with DC lobbyists more than he does with Iraqi death squads. As for democratic aspirations, I think by now it is time we considered the possibility that the level of American sincerity in promoting democracy in Iraq is a somewhat less significant problem than the level of Iraqi interest in the concept.

[ummabdulla]

Whichever PR firm he got, he should trade them for the one Benazir Bhutto has retained. She has the most absurd blog post at Huffington Post, basically portraying herself as the most wonderful person who's ever existed. And almost all of the comments are adoring... I don't think that she could have hoped for such a response in her wildest dreams.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/benazir-bhutto/why-im-returning-to-paki_b_62792.html