October Surprise?

A favorite prediction among the leftmost in the blog-o-sphere is the impending "October Surprise", the capture of Osama Bin-Laden in time to boost Bush back into the White House.

Which made this otherwise forgettable story pique my interest:

U.S. Official Says Close to Catching Bin Laden
Sun Sep 5, 2004 08:38 AM ET
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The United States and its allies have put Osama bin Laden on the defensive, increasing chances of his capture soon, a U.S. counter-terrorism official said in remarks published in Pakistani media on Sunday.

Cofer Black, State Department coordinator for counter-terrorism, said in Islamabad the entire "infrastructure" was in place to capture bin Laden and his close lieutenants, Pakistan's English language Daily Times reported.
...
"If he (bin Laden) has a watch, he should be looking at it because the clock is ticking. He will be caught.

"Programs are in place and what I tell people (is) I would be surprised but not necessarily shocked if we wake up tomorrow and he has been caught along with all his lieutenants," said Black, who went to Bangladesh on Sunday.

Of course, there is nothing in what this official said that couldn't have been said years ago. I did have to check the date on this story. This may just be a report from a stringer in need of a rent payment. On the other hand, it's nice to see that there is still someone in the Administration who remembers the guy's name.