Bush Becoming Isolated More Than Ever on Iraq--AP WASHINGTON
President Bush once said he was determined to stick with the Iraq war even if his wife and his dog were the only ones left at his side.
It’s moving in that direction.
People in the United States already were angry about the war before Bush said he would try to bring unrelentingly violent Iraq back from the brink by adding 21,500 more U.S. troops to the 132,000 there now
Polls show the U.S. public overwhelmingly does not like the idea. Democrats always in opposition were joined very publicly by some Republicans in dissent. Even Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had to be persuaded to go along with a larger U.S. presence in Baghdad.
“He is as isolated as a president can be,” said Julian Zelizer, a political historian at Boston University.
See here for the complete text.
***
Meanwhile, something bloggers have been noting for months or years and the MSM has begun to pay attention to recently was notably absent from this article:
Q: What's the difference between a Democratic Republic and a Dictatorship?
A: A Dictator doesn't know or care what the people people he is governing want or need.
*_*_*
Falling Flat -- By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Well, I'm bleary-eyed from searching, but I haven't found anyone who thinks that George W. Bush delivered a great speech Wednesday night.
There are certainly pundits who back the president's plan to send 20,000 more troops to Iraq. But the consensus is that Bush looked weary, subdued and almost pained as he spoke from the White House library. The verve and cockiness were gone. Few went as far as Howard Fineman, who said Bush spoke with the confidence of a perp in a police lineup, but for a major speech at a critical time for a faltering war, the president's demeanor was surprising.
One reason the theatrics mattered so much, I think, is that the White House had leaked every single detail in advance.
^
Maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe it's all about results at this late date. . . .
^
After the president finally acknowledged mistakes, I guess the window for plain talk slammed shut. Condi Rice, on the Hill, refused to acknowledge that 20,000 more troops is an escalation. It was, she insisted, an "augmentation."
See here for the complete text.
*_*_*
Whether by accident or by design, our Boy in the Bubble has been as isolated as a president can be for some time now. He has never tried to get a sense of what the people he's supposed to be governing want or need. So, is it any surprise it has come to this?
And as for Condi, well, what can I say? She seems to have as much acquaintance with truth as her boss does.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
TC, I know someone who thinks Bush delivered a great speech. The Sarge.
I was interested to note that Condi, before the Senate Foreign Relations comittee, and Hadley, on Meet the Press, bith claimed that the escalstion is the Iraqi government's request. What liars!
as to Sarge -- while it makes me sad, I can't truly claim to be any less knee-jerk anti-Bush than he is knee-jerk pro-Bush.
after all, I went into mourning when he assumed the mantle.
unfortunately, I do believe the facts are bearing out the fears I had at the time.
***
as to Condi and Hadley **sigh** anyone with even one eye to see knows Maliki is lukewarm at best. my guess is he's actually downright cold to the idea but trying to walk a tightrope between Bush and al-Sadr.
and the rope is stretched over a volcano.
What an appropriate metaphor. You couldn't have pegged it better. I think I'm also knee-jerk anti-Bush, but I'd like to think that I'm open minded enough to give him credit for doing something right, if that ever happens. I supported him on Afghanistan until I saw where he was going when he appointed two former Unocal employees as our Ambassador and their President.
yes, Afghanistan's war made sense in the beginning. now, with it reverting back to the taliban gangs while we're too thin on the ground to stop it----
***
as to the knee-jerk--
though Bush 41 never was my cuppa, I used to yell at the radio when the more liberal pundits used to rake him over the coals for issues I thought they were overreacting to [don't remember what they were, now].
of course, the attacks on Clinton hadn't happened yet--nor today's horrors.
didn't realize how good we had it at the time. . . .
I too, have become knee jerk anti GWB, where I used to be a conservative Republican. I registered Demo this time around. Also in re his "speech": Maybe it was my early life theatrical training, but whenever I see someone reading a speech to me, obviously NOT having memorized it to any appreciable degree, I am turned off. The meat drips off and you all know what is left: bare bones. The man thinks he is a "war" President. How very sad to think I came close to voting for him the last time around. Mea Culpa. I'm curious about Two Crows remark "Bush 41." Can you explain that?
hey, catmoves--welcome!
as to Bush 41 -- it's shorthand for the 1st President Bush [he was the 41st president] as the younger is Bush 43.
when discussing them together, it just helps distinguish who you're talking about.
meanwhile, hope you'll keep dropping by.
want to get as wide a discussion as possible going, here.
:)
I was not a Bush 41 supporter, but you're so right. He was an improvement over his wayward sun. He did make one mistake, however that cannot be forgiven. he should have used a condom.
Post a Comment