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Bush Lacks Confidence in U.S. Troops in Iraq
April 24, 2007

President Bush today confirmed his intention to veto the latest war spending bill from Congress. He labeled the bill a “political statement,” and said it directly contradicts the judgment of our military commanders. Canned laughter is played all over the world every time Bush refers to himself as a military commander.

Senate majority leader Harry Reid said Congress can no longer turn a blind eye to the Bush administration’s incompetence and dishonesty. Reid is being unusually kind. Bush is not in a state of denial, Bush is psychologically mired in a state of schizophrenic delusion. He actually believes we’re still fighting a war against Al Qaida in Iraq. To promote that idea, the Bush administration has decided to re-label all Sunni terrorist groups in Iraq as members of (or related to) Al Qaida.

What we’re really fighting in Iraq is a delaying action while Congress plays semantic games with “pretend” timelines for troop withdrawals. Congress has convinced itself the American people want a “phased” withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Where they got the idea of “phased” withdrawal is anybody’s guess. The American public wants us out, period. The sooner the better. Bush (on the other hand) is convinced the American people gave him a mandate to fight the war on his own terms essentially forever.

Bush says U.S. troops should not be caught in the middle of a showdown between the White House and Congress. Guess what? That’s exactly where the troops are caught, and we all know Bush is responsible for stranding them not only there but also in the middle of a civil war showdown between Shi’ites and Sunnis. Unlike Congress though, the Shi’ites and Sunnis are shooting real bullets and delivering real bombs. So far, Congress is firing only blanks.

Bush obviously lacks confidence in U.S. forces. To him, the troops are nothing more than a convenient and expendable commodity to toss about in political debates. Anybody who criticizes Bush’s ideas or policies on Iraq is accused by Bush or one of his “loyal Bushees” of undercutting the morale of our soldiers and undermining our troops on the ground.

Bush himself does not think the troops can win in Iraq. If he did, he would be more than willing to establish a timetable for withdrawal. Since Bush figures the troops stand no credible chance of winning, he intends to keep them in Iraq indefinitely. Tony Blair forgot to teach Bush that colonization is an old-world idea that failed.

In reality, the only thing undermining our troops on the ground is a deplorable lack of leadership at the top. Criticism from concerned Americans does not detract from morale. Watching a good friend blown to bits by an IED undercuts morale. Being separated from family and friends undercuts morale. Surviving a tour in Iraq only to find out you're going back because nothing worked; that undercuts morale.

Witnessing officers lying about friendly fire accidents; watching known terrorists being released by the government you are allegedly attempting to help; not being able to drink alcoholic beverages in deference to the morons who are shooting at you; that is what undercuts morale. Bush wouldn’t know what morale is even if Cheney shot him in the chest with it.

Bush stands on the fundamental theory that a withdrawal timetable will motivate insurgents and terrorists to back off and wait for U.S. troops to leave Iraq, at which time they will resume their activities. On the surface that appears to be a reasonable assumption.

Unfortunately, Bush fails to understand the people in Iraq with whom we are interfering. They possess a characteristic called “patience,” something most Americans lack. The Arabs don’t need a timetable from us. Whenever the U.S. leaves Iraq (and sooner or later we will), they will return to killing themselves in the name of religion. Whether it takes one generation, two generations or 100 years, they don’t care. One way or another, they will wait us out.

There is no tactical objective in Iraq, only warring factions of Arabs with a very long history of violence and religious strife. “Democracy” is not in their vocabulary. Even if it were, can anyone reasonably believe Saudi Arabia or Iran would tolerate a democratic country bordering them? Somebody is forgetting the Iraq/Iran war and Saudi threats to fund Sunni terrorists in Iraq if the Shi’ites start winning.

Logically, if we can not win, we can not “lose” either. What would we lose, “face?” Sorry, thanks to Bush that has already happened throughout the world. I would much rather have Bush lose “face” than another thousand American lives. Our soldiers, Marines, sailors and airmen perform their assigned duties admirably. Nobody can take that away from them. Attempts to bring them home are GOOD for morale.

It is time for Americans to come home and let the Arabs sort out their own affairs. Enough American blood has been spilled in the name of Iraqi democracy. The only thanks we’ve received are from crooked Iraqi politicians who live on our financial bribes, and American contractors who are making a financial killing in Iraq over the blood of our soldiers.

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