<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?><oembed><version><![CDATA[1.0]]></version><provider_name><![CDATA[The Dish]]></provider_name><provider_url><![CDATA[http://dish.andrewsullivan.com]]></provider_url><author_name><![CDATA[Andrew Sullivan]]></author_name><author_url><![CDATA[https://dish.andrewsullivan.com/author/sullydish/]]></author_url><title><![CDATA[Rove, Rice And&nbsp;Saakashvili]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[
<p>What were they talking about <a href="http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2008/08/13/did-karl-rove-chat-to-saakashvili-about-south-ossetia-too/">last July</a>? Did Rove meet Saakashvili in Georgia? What has Scheuneman been promising Saakashvili for years &#8211; and what message was sent to Georgia after McCain won the nomination? Was Saakashvili goaded into goading Russia for campaign purposes? </p>
<p>These are all questions at this point. But given the record of Cheney and Rove of engineering foreign crises for domestic political purposes, they can&#8217;t be dismissed out of hand. We could have simple miscommunication here between a supportive White House and a somewhat excitable Georgian leader. Or we could have something halfway between miscommunication and malevolence. With Rove, you can never be too sure.</p>
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