If At First You Don't Succeed...

Faced with growing violence, Bush changes the playbook for handing Iraq back to its people. Now all Jerry Bremer has to do is figure out whether the country can meet the new timetable

It's hard to have an afternoon's uninterrupted fun when you are the National Security Adviser. On Nov. 9, Condoleezza Rice, a passionate football fan, was at FedEx Field outside Washington, watching the Redskins play the Seattle Seahawks, when she got a call from L. Paul (Jerry) Bremer, the American proconsul in Iraq. For the better part of two weeks, Bremer and Rice had been discussing how to speed the transfer of power to Iraqis. Both agreed that the matter now required face time with Administration principals in Washington. When the conversation resumed the next day, it took just a quick look...

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