Exile Finds Ties To U.S. a Boon And a Barrier
Ahmed Chalabi is something of a cypher, in that the viewer tends to see whatever it is that they are inclined to see. Hero. Puppet. Altruist. Power Broker. He is all of those, and none of those- depending on who happens to be doing the defining. What is clear, however, is that Chalabi is the Pentagon's golden boy. If Chalabi takes care of business, he could emerge as Iraq's new leader. Negotiating his way out of the Byzantine maze that is post-war Iraq may in the end prove to be too much for any one man, but Chalabi begins his quest (if that is indeed what it is) with a significant head start.
In the hurly-burly of postwar Iraq, Chalabi has staked his claim to power with a distinct advantage -- an inside track to the U.S. military now in charge of the country. Other deep-pocketed exiles, tribal sheiks, Muslim clerics and Kurdish leaders have sought to establish themselves on the uncharted political landscape here, particularly leaders of the country's 60 percent Shiite majority. But none other than Chalabi can reach into the Pentagon and get things done.
Chalabi's links to the Pentagon have emerged as his greatest asset and greatest liability as he seeks to build support among ordinary Iraqis for himself and the group he leads, the Iraqi National Congress.
Widely regarded outside Iraq as the Pentagon's favored candidate to lead this battle-scarred nation, Chalabi wields influence that has been growing since his return to Baghdad 13 days ago precisely because he is viewed as the figure best connected to the occupying power. But his relationship with the United States, which has included extensive financial support, also has become a galvanizing force for rising anti-American sentiments across Iraq.
To many here, Chalabi is seen as a Pentagon puppet and an opportunist who is living large, out of touch with Iraqis who stayed in Iraq and weathered fallen president Saddam Hussein's brutality for three decades. Posters and graffiti proclaiming "No Chalabi" and "Chalabi is an American stooge" have recently appeared on walls in Baghdad and other cities.
Chalabi's ability to address that criticism could determine whether he will assume a leadership role by capitalizing on the head start he has been given by the Pentagon, or whether he will be sidelined by a confluence of new political forces led by Shiite clerics, tribal chieftains or other exile leaders.
I have listened to interviews in which Chalabi has disavowed any desire to run for political office in Iraq. He has repeatedly said that his only desire is to help his native country get back on it's feet. Whether not his claim of disinterest is plausible is difficult to know. There is simply too much uncertainty on the Iraqi political landscape, particularly when you consider that Iraq has no democratic tradition to build from. Whatever the realities on the ground, Chalabi is certainly acting an awful lot like a political candidate.
Chalabi said he is not seeking to become Iraq's political leader -- at least not right now. His goal, he said in an interview, "is to promote democracy and build a civil society," both of which were forbidden under Hussein's Baath Party rule.
But Chalabi and the Iraqi National Congress may quickly begin playing a much larger role. Jay M. Garner, the retired Army lieutenant general who is serving as Iraq's day-to-day administrator, intends to give former exiles a central role in an interim political authority that will govern the country under American tutelage until elections are held and a permanent government is formed, U.S. officials and former Iraqi exile leaders said.
Chalabi said Garner told him over dinner at the club Thursday night that "the opposition leadership will become the nucleus" of the Iraqi Interim Authority. U.S. and Iraqi officials said Garner is expected to outline that vision for the interim government during a U.S.-sponsored meeting Monday in Baghdad, to which 300 Iraqi political leaders, almost all of them former exiles, have been invited.
"We can write our own ticket," Chalabi said with a broad smile.
Indeed. The field is wide open, and the race has clearly begun. Of course, no knows where the finish line is or what the new, democratic Iraqi government will or is supposed to look like. Nevertheless, the Pentagon has their man. It will be interesting to see if Chalabi can overcome his time in exile and convince Iraqis that he can lead them out of the wilderness and into full membership in the international community.
