"Several of Bush's top advisers believe that the president's view of postwar Iraq was significantly affected by his meeting with three Iraqi exiles in the Oval Office several months before the 2003 invasion, Draper reports. He writes that all three exiles agreed without qualification that "Iraq would greet American forces with enthusiasm. Ethnic and religious tensions would dissolve with the collapse of Saddam's regime. And democracy would spring forth with little effort -- particularly in light of Bush's commitment to rebuild the country."" (The three were Kanan Makiya, Rend Rahim, and a third whose name escapes me. It was in that meeting that Makiya offered his "sweets and flowers" prediction. But how typical of Bush. Instead of assuming responsibility, he now blames three visitors to the White House).