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# Posted 9:31 PM by Ariel David Adesnik

THE PENTAGON PROPHET: I'm surprised I missed this WaPo profile of Paul Wolfowitz (aka "Wolfivitz") from a few weeks back. One of the most interesting things in the article is its observation:

Wolfowitz's preoccupation -- some say obsession -- with Saddam Hussein goes back to his first stint at the Pentagon, between 1977 and 1980, when he was asked to analyze military threats in the Persian Gulf region, particularly to oil-rich Saudi Arabia. Other officials focused on the threat from Iran, then in the throes of an Islamic revolution, and the Soviet Union. Wolfowitz thought the main threat came from Iraq, and called for the United States to pre-position military equipment in the region for use in a conflict.

A still-secret Pentagon paper Wolfowitz authored in 1979 included the line, "It seems likely that we and Iraq will increasingly be at odds."

Now some of you may be wondering "Just what the hell was Paul Wolfowitz doing at the Pentagon between 1977 and 1980?" Yes, it's true. Wolfowitz worked for Jimmy Carter. In fact he was even a registered Democrat at the time. (Which isn't to say that anyone at the Pentagon was listening to what Wolfowitz had to say.)

Anyway, right now, you're probably thinking to yourself either "Wow! Even Democrats can have great things to say about national security!" or "Anyone who knows that much about national security will eventually wind up becoming a Republican."

As for me, I'd like to think of Wolfowitz's political journey as an indication that your ideas are much more important than your party. Sometimes -- just sometimes -- politics can stop at the water's edge. (But when it does, the media takes over for the Democrats!) Of course, my interpretation is no less self-interested than either of the ones mentioned above, since my career may well depend on having others not care who I voted for in the last election.

The WaPo profile also contains this curious line:

In the Arab world, and much of Europe, Wolfowitz is often talked about as the leading light of a small band of neo-conservative thinkers who have allegedly hijacked U.S. foreign policy and launched it in dangerous new directions.

Uh, what about America, folks?

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