That's How To Do It

Jonathan Weisman actually follows part of the Post's anonymous source policy in Democratic Lawmakers Split on Iraq:

Pelosi hesitated for nearly two weeks before endorsing Murtha's call for the withdrawal of 160,000 U.S. troops, while she and her aides assessed the political fallout from his action. "What he has said has great wisdom," Pelosi said of her colleague on Wednesday. "While the president is digging a hole, Mr. Murtha is speaking from the light of day about the realities in Iraq, and so yes, I am supporting Mr. Murtha's proposal."

Her pronouncement Wednesday, more than anything, was proof that "the frustrations of the activist wing of the Democratic Party have boiled over," said a prominent Democratic pollster, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of angering clients.

I'm still amazed that a Democrat leader could propose something so transparently irresponsible.

Update: Weisman's stab at characterizing his anonymous source is in contrast to that of Josh White and Jonathan Finer in Senator Seeks Answers on Iraq Stories, about U.S. propaganda efforts:

An Army officer who worked in Iraq last year said there was increasing pressure in late 2004 to promote "good-news stories" and that there was a growing divide between the public affairs officers and the "information operations" officers about how to get the message out. In some cases, the officer said, Iraqis were hired by U.S. forces to write stories that would be sent to Iraqi newspapers, but the source of the stories was always clear. The planted stories, by contrast, were presented to newspapers by people posing as freelance journalists, and the source of the material was hidden.

The officer, who spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to discuss the program, said American employees of Iraqex -- Lincoln Group's former name -- arrived in Baghdad in 2004 under a multimillion-dollar contract and aggressively sought to get involved in influencing the Iraqi media. The officer said Iraqex took the military's ideas and then embellished them.

The anonymous officer wants to destroy the program. Say so.