A little detail on the arrest of the Al Qaeda no. 2

We must show progress.

The announcement came as talks between the United States and Iraq on transferring operational command of Iraq's forces to the Defense Ministry were deadlocked. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was demanding more independence for the U.S.-trained army that Washington hopes can take over and let Americans go home.....

Hours after an "embarrassed" U.S. military again postponed a ceremony to hand command of Iraqi troops to the government, the National Security Adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie summoned reporters to a hastily arranged news conference to announce that al Qaeda leader Hamid Juma Faris al-Suaidi had been seized some days ago.

So, the handover flounders on the fact that the Iraqis really want it to be a handover, then Rubaie calls a "hastily arranged news conference" for something that happened days ago.

(Rubaie, you may remember, was one of the Dawa Shia exiles who lived in London from the 80's who "agitated" for the overthrow of Saddam, returned to Iraq, was placed on the Iraqi Governing Council by Bremer. He has held a military/intelligence post important to the Americans in every iteration of the Iraqi government. He is a neurologist with no military or intelligence background.

Now he's the National Security Advisor.

I'm just saying....)

Oh, let me add that just days before the 2004 election, Mr. Rubaie, in his official capacity, gave a series of comments attacking John Kerry.

Just to put the "hastily arranged" Number 2 announcement in some context.