Indeed, Mr Blair might find that, when it comes to pushing through laws, a departure date will help.
Even if it goes ahead, the referendum seems not to allow for a change of the 2003 departure date.
And the thinking among smart people at the Pentagon is that if Gates were to stay, the deal could not include any public departure date.
Nor is securing parliamentary approval when the vote is taken in March, a couple of months before Mr Blair is expected to announce his departure date.
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Its scheduled departure date is March 25, and it will splash down in the Pacific with a payload of 2, 300 pounds of equipment and experiment samples from the Space Station.
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And weeks of negative headlines about secret loans and the Tessa Jowell affair - coupled with continuing uncertainty about Tony Blair's likely departure date - have added to the sense of gloom, with all of these subjects reportedly coming up on the doorstep.
As for our military presence, which, again, is drawing down significantly and has drawn down significantly, we have said now for a long time that we would consider a request by the Iraqi government for some sort of continued presence beyond the agreed departure date of December 31st.
They included announcing a departure sooner than the date in late July envisaged by Mr Blair and something like a joint premiership in the interim.
They said the e-mail stated he had told the police authority of his intention to leave for personal reasons, but he has not set a date for his departure.
And he urged Tony Blair to set a date for his departure, to end speculation about it and ensure a smooth handover of power to Gordon Brown, the man widely expected to be the next Labour leader.
But the date of Mr Mori's departure is still not set and, worse, none of the likely candidates to succeed him inspires much confidence.
Mr Brown's nail-chewing insecurities have been eased by knowing (roughly) both the date of Mr Blair's departure and that he will probably not face a serious contest for the leadership.
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