One of the perplexing things about the Democratic Party is how it rewards and glorifies consultants and experts who get major issues so wrong. Back in 2002, former CIA analyst Kenneth Pollack’s book The Threatening Storm, convinced a wide swath of the Democratic intelligentsia that Saddam possessed WMD’s and thus had to be removed. Needless to say, he was wrong.

Undeterred, Pollack returned two years later with The Persian Puzzle, a book about Iran, which met with glowing reviews. Senator Jay Rockefeller, ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, gave his House counterpart, Rep. Jane Harman, a copy with the inscription: "Jane, read this and you will know what you’re talking about."

"When Ken Pollack talks, I listen," Harman said yesterday at the Brookings Institution. You see, Pollack has just authored a mammoth new report on Iraq which tells the Bush Administration and the Democrats how to make that mess right. For the last two weeks, Pollack has been selling his recommendations in meetings with Congress and the Executive Branch. Though the report contains a lot of good, detailed information and analysis, Pollack’s central thesis reinforces the view of many foreign policy elites that prolonging the American occupation will benefit Iraq.

That’s a stark contrast to Rep. Jack Murtha, who states boldly:

Our troops are the targets, and they’re unifying Iraq against us…Once we get out of there, it will be more stable in Iraq.

Words to the wise.