Delayed Plebiscite

While many people have suggested delaying the election, a cool op-ed in the New Times today recommends a delayed plebiscite:

Ask Iraqi voters in a referendum six weeks after the national elections if
they think foreign soldiers should withdraw immediately. Let the Iraqis
debate what the absence of American forces will mean for their families and
nation. Tell them we'll hold the referendum every nine months until they
vote us out or we determine it's time to leave.

Barry Nalebuff and I made a similar proposal on this very blog back about a month ago. We were debating submitting it to the Times today, when low and behold. Sadly the time to combine the plebiscite with the national election has probably past. But a non-lagged plebiscite might have played an important role in getting Sunnis to participate in the election. And it would force the politicians to speak more honestly with an electorate that with the exception of Kurds tells Gallop that it wants the U.S. to leave.