Yes, uh..."stunning" is the word I'd use

So the look into Afghanistan's "election" is finished according to the ECC and it seems that the electoral fraud that was obvious to everyone turned out to be obvious to a panel of experts as well. Not that it's going to do anything to hamper our transfer of funds to his government, increase in troops to his country, and escalation of our war against terror. See, Karzai is a crook, but he's our crook. Plus, he's a much smaller crook than anyone thought.

An investigation of allegedly fraudulent ballots in Afghanistan's troubled election has reduced President Hamid Karzai's portion of the vote to about 47 percent, an outcome that will trigger a runoff between him and his closest competitor, according to officials familiar with results.

The tally by the U.N.-backed Electoral Complaints Commission, which one official called "stunning," is due to be finalized Friday. Preliminary results by Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission had given Karzai 54.6 percent of the Aug. 20 vote.

7.6%? C'mon that's practically honest. The little scamp just wanted to avoid a run-off election, because he knows heeding the ways of democracy according to the manner in which their constitution demands is detrimental to his country. Now there's going to be another election, more money is going to be spent, a new round of threats levied against those who vote by the Taliban, and the onset of winter might drive voter apathy to American levels. That is, of course, if Karzai even recognizes the results of the study. You see he thinks that the study of the internationally back election for his internationally backed and funded government during the internationally backed, funded, and fought war for the liberation of his people is too tainted by the stench of international involvement. There is that.

But these findings have "major implications for the Obama administration's ongoing deliberations over Afghanistan war strategy" according to the Washington Post. You see, depending on how Karzai responds to the discovery of his obvious election rigging will determine how we go forward in Afghanistan. You see if he allows the runoff to go forward and admits the fraud, well then we'll give his government billions of dollars and escalate the war in his country. But if he refuses to do either, then we'll just be forced to give his government billions of dollars and escalate the war in his country...but with a head cocked skeptically and a cautious look on our faces. So you can see what hangs in the balance here.