Here is the first paragraph of Ryan Lizza's New Republic article on Kerry's Iraq position:

Iraq has been a vexing issue for John Kerry. Every time he takes a position, the domestic political ground seems to shift under his feet. He supported the use-of-force resolution in 2002, only to find that Democratic audiences hated the war and were flocking to Howard Dean. So Kerry adjusted his rhetoric to sound more like the Vermont governor. Then, once assured of the nomination, he began tacking back to the center to court moderate, general-election voters. Now, just as much of the country is moving left on the war, Kerry has moved right. He supports more troops if commanders in the field want them and has called for a high commissioner in Iraq who can bypass the U.N. bureaucracy. What's more, after opposing last year's $87 billion Iraq supplemental, he is prepared to support Bush's new $25 billion request.

That captures Kerry's problem nicely. While he's talking about how to stabilize Iraq responsibly and effectively, the public increasingly just wants to get the hell out. That suggests that Kerry needs to reframe his approach. It needs to be reframed as the quickest possible responsible way to get out of Iraq, not simply as the responsible way to deal with the Iraq situation, no exit date specified. Otherwise, he risks being out-of-step with rapidly shifting public opinion.

One possible way for Kerry to blend responsibility and exit strategy was suggested today by James Steinberg and Michael O'Hanlon of the oh-so-responsible Brookings Institution. In their Washington Post op-ed, "Set a Date to Pull Out", Steinberg and O'Hanlon propose that US commit itself to terminating military operations by the end of next year, following the Iraqi elections and the adoption of a new constitution. They argue that, while the US should indicate its willingness to stay as part of some international force, that would only be at the specific request of the new Iraqi government. They further argue that, while the US should encourage a democratic, tolerant Iraq, we must be willing to accept the type of government the Iraqis themselves choose. Finally, our security interests in Iraq should be pursued through collaboration with Iraq's neighbors and with others that share those interests, such as NATO and the UN, rather than unilaterally by ourselves.

Of course, the devil's in the details with plans like these. But the Kerry campaign's got to start somewhere if it hopes to surf, rather than fight, the current wave of public disaffection for the Iraq war.