"Why Does Maliki Hate Iraq?"

This just in, a guaranteed McCain head exploder.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told a German magazine he supported prospective U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's proposal that U.S. troops should leave Iraq within 16 months.

"U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama talks about 16 months. That, we think, would be the right timeframe for a withdrawal, with the possibility of slight changes."

The famous "facts on the ground" show this: The Iraqi leader and the Iraqis want us to think about getting out, not a hundred years from now, but soon. As in tell us when you're leaving and stick to it.

It could be -- as in other cases of Maliki speaking out -- that the Bush-McCain administration will claim something's lost in the translation. (That usually buys them enough time to try to talk him out of his views.) Or it could be that McCain and Bush will get the message this time.