This grass roots movement could yet supplant stubborn politicians at the center:
The Shia and Sunni party coalitions that entered Parliament in December 2005, have started to come apart. Meanwhile, a new alliance of Sunni Arab tribes in western Iraq further mixes things up. The tribal alliance has not automatically joined with existing Sunni Arab parties, so new alliances are beginning to emerge, and some may succeed in crossing sectarian and regional divides.
I called this possibility already:
A political settlement with the remnant Sunni Arab population would help isolate the remaining fanatics. If leaders from the bottom up keep cutting deals with our forces, pretty soon Sunni Arab "leaders" may find they need to catch up before they are irrelevant.
This could apply to Shia leaders too, of course, as Shias reject Iranian domination as promoted by Sadr.
In a democracy, leaders can be replaced. Do the members of Iraq's parliament appreciate that they will face voters again in two years? And worse, face local leaders who actually have gained the respect of the voters?
