Obviously they want to play it way down and I would hope for good reason.
In any case, the cat is out of the bag and it's going to be tough to get it back in.
My only thought is they don't want to get pulled into something before they are ready (or do anything at all) and a big important and, the continual sell to the American public. The peaceniks and dissenters are having more influence than the administration likes possibly. Or something else entirely.
What a way to have to run a war.
Could be, but I think your "something else entirely" is more likely.
Doubt Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, even Powell give a flying fig about the peaceniks.
That "something else entirely" may be that it's too dangerous to declare war on Iraq -- for now.