Clerical Error

There's one person in Iraq who isn't thrilled with the idea of McCain's Long View:

Iraq's most revered Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has strongly objected to a 'security accord' between the US and Iraq.

The Grand Ayatollah has reiterated that he would not allow Iraq to sign such a deal with 'the US occupiers' as long as he was alive, a source close to Ayatollah Sistani said.

The source added the Grand Ayatollah had voiced his strong objection to the deal during a meeting with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in the holy city of Najaf on Thursday.

The remarks were made amid reports that the Iraqi government might sign a long-term framework agreement with the United States, under which Washington would be allowed to set up permanent military bases in the country and US citizens would be granted immunity from legal prosecution in the country.

A better idea would be to go ahead and build the bases, but then turn them over to the Iraqis. Call me crazy, but I thought the idea was to help Iraq become both stable and free? Treating the country like one huge military base doesn't sound like it would go over well with the locals.