MEMO TO BUSH -- SKIP SYRIA, ADDRESS THE ISRAEL QUESTION: According to this article, and judging by what I've seen on TV in the last several days, this war is largely over. Sure, there is colossal work still to be done, and our country and its leaders will be judged not by how fast we swept Saddam's regime out of power, but by how healthy and democratic Iraq becomes in the weeks, months, and years to come. While this is not entirely fair -- we will be granting, it seems, broad autonomy to the Iraqi people, and so they will have a major role in what becomes of their country, for better or worse -- it is certainly the case. Should Iraq turn into a cesspool of depravity and terrorism, ala Taliban-led Afghanistan, or a theocractic powderkeg, ala mullah-centric Iran, our latest Gulf War will not described with reverence in the history books yet to be written. Still, it's clear that our leadership will soon have the latitude to address other, pressing issues, and I've been doing some thinking as to where they should focus next. (Please, don't thank me yet.)

Any thought that we should target Syria any time soon should be dispensed with. While there are undoubtedly chemical weapons initiatives afoot, while there are certainly human rights violations aplenty, and while there is a very real track record of aiding and abetting terrorists, there is no clear and present danger posed to our country by Syria. And, judging by the performance of their ambassador on Sunday's MEET THE PRESS, they want to part of us right now either. Great. So what's next?

Israel. Bush unveiled his blueprint for Middle East peace just before he embarked on Operation Iraqi Freedom. Now, for his next miracle, he needs to hold Arafat (and co.) and Sharon (and co.) responsible for publicly carving out a lasting agreement that will provide a basis for peace, and an equal basis for enforcement. It's a time for leaders to draw the lines in the Middle East, and for us to pledge to help them police and protect those lines. If we can publicly facilitate this process and show good faith, it will provide the moral foundation for what comes next. Let's focus on process right now, on getting it right diplomatically. This is where we fell down on the lead-up to the war in Iraq. Thankfully, it seems not to have cost us too much. Now is the time for us to reinvest diplomatically, to take the first steps to restore our international standing. Make no mistake. The time may come when we have to send troops to Syria, or to some other country. But while we are nation-building in Afghanistan and Iraq -- and that's exactly what we're doing, W. -- let's focus on rebuilding our precarious position in the international community, especially with the Arab world. The only logical next step is to focus our efforts on Israel and Palestine as the linchpin of world security in the decades ahead. The Arab world hated Hussein, and so despite public rhetoric, they did nothing to stand in the way of our efforts to remove him. We are not likely to be granted that latitude again.