Last month, I reported that Bob Woodward is at work on a new book about the Obama administration, which has been a cause of concern at the White House. At the time, sources told me that Woodward would likely focus his efforts on Obama's foreign policy, and the high-level debates that play out inside the West Wing. A favorite parlor game in Washington is guessing the identities of Woodward's (many) anonymous sources. This time around, speculation is that Woodward will turn to national security adviser Jim Jones, whom Woodward forged a relationship with. In my piece, I reported that Jones was a guest of Woodward at his wife Elsa Walsh's fiftieth birthday party held at Sally Quinn and Ben Bradlee's house. "He and Elsa were glued to Jones at the cocktail party before the dinner started," one attendee told me.
Jones is proving to be a valuable Woodward source already. This afternoon, the Washington Post posted Woodward's exclusive interview with Jones datelined Camp Leatherneck. Traveling to Afghanistan with Jones, Woodward reported that Jones told commanders that the Obama administration wanted to focus the war effort on economic development and national building. "The message," writes Woodward, "seems designed to cap expectations that more troops might be coming, though the administration has not ruled out additional deployments in the future."
Now we know Jones is on board. Who else is talking?
--Gabriel Sherman