It is a huge deal. Yes, it’s just a piece of paper — like the articles of confederation, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, etc — but in a region with no serious, lasting, history of democracy or liberal constitutionalism, this strikes me as a genie which cannot ever be completely put back in the bottle. The Iranians are surely watching. More important, the Iraqis are watching. No matter what happens next, they will remember this promise of democracy. Whether it can be delivered on America’s timetable is another matter.