Juan Cole - 09/14/05

At least 90 Dead, 162 Injured in Baghdad Blast
Sunnis Reject Constitution

At 7 am on Wednesday morning, guerrillas detonated a huge suicide car bomb in the midst of Shiite day laborers gathering in search of work in the district of Kadhimiyah. It killed at least 90 and wounded 162, according to Al-Jazeera on Wednesday morning Iraq time..

On Monday night, guerrillas had detonated a bomb at a Baghdad restaurant, killing 5 and injuring 10. A bomber on a bus in the Shiite city of Hillah killed 2 and wounded 10.


Guest Editorial: Myerson on Iraqi Constitution

"Federalism and the Iraqi Constitution"
by Roger B. Myerson

The draft Iraqi constitution deserves much more public discussion in America as well as in Iraq. As an economist who analyzes democratic constitutional structures, I'd like to offer a few comments.

In most of the text, the constitution seems to establish a reasonably standard parliamentary system, with a unicameral legislature, a Prime Minister who heads the cabinet, and a weak ceremonial President. But there are two nonstandard provisions in the constitution that deserve much more analysis: the provision for creating regional governments (Articles 113-121), and the amendment in Article 135 that establishes the Presidential Council.