Powell Resignation Watch

The Washington Post has the goods on the Joint Chiefs’ "end-run" around Rummy to give Powell the leverage to force the Bush Administration to the U.N., and Josh Marshall is (as usual) spot-on in his comments.  Anyone else getting a chuckle out of the possibility that Rummy, Wolfowitz, Perle & Co. might have forgotten that Powell knows a thing or two about the Pentagon?

Anyway, if Powell succeeds in securing a Security Council resolution that both significantly reduces the military and financial burdens to the U.S. and increases the international investment in the reconstruction of Iraq, it will be an unquestionably good thing.  I imagine it will also dramatically reduce the likelihood of Powell departing the Bush Administration prior to the 2004 election.  There’s still quite a few months to go, however, and it’s "not too late" for Cheney and Rummy to indulge in a little payback.  Add in the prospect of a Clark candidacy hammering on the Bush Administration’s military and diplomatic fecklessness, and Powell might yet grasp the greater part of valor.