Chalabi Future Leader Of Iraq?

I just finished watching Ahmad Chalabi in an appearance on This Week With George Stephanopoulos. Thanks to the United States, and the advent of the first real elections that Iraq has ever had, he has won a majority of the seats in the new Iraqi congress, and is odds on to become the next Iraqi Prime Minister. Mr. Stephanopoulos tossed up several questions to Mr. Chalabi, the most important of which was the potential relationship of a new Iraqi regime with that of Iran. He basically tried to ask if Iran would be controlling or influencing the decisions made by the new Iraqi leaders. There is good news, if Mr Chalbi can be believed (which I think he can). He made it very clear that the new government would be an independent entity, with no outside influence. He went further to say that with such a long common border, Iran and Iraq of course would have to deal with each other. He still sounded quite friendly to the US, as he thanked the United States and President Bush by name, as well as referring to the coalition forces as friends of Iraq. The left leaning doomsayers, as usual seem to be braying about nothing when they spout about the "failure" of the elections to elect the US backed people who ran for office.
I am encouraged, and hope that Mr Chalabi will remain as forward thinking and reasonable as he seemed this morning.

I'll be back

CC