Bush Defends War Amid Patriotic Scene
In a July 4 speech to troops at Ft. Bragg, N.C., the president backs U.S. strategy and gives an upbeat assessment of Iraq and Afghanistan.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bush5jul05,1,4162485.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
By Peter G. Gosselin, Times Staff Writer
July 5, 2006
WASHINGTON — President Bush used the patriotic setting of a Fourth of July appearance before U.S. troops Tuesday to mount a feisty defense of administration strategy in the war on terrorism and to assert that America was winning the battles in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Bush portrayed the United States' enemies as on the run, as he has repeatedly since last month's U.S. killing of Abu Musab Zarqawi, Al Qaeda's top leader in Iraq. He also took a swipe at the recent efforts by congressional Democrats to set a timetable for withdrawal of American forces in Iraq.
"This moment, when the terrorists are suffering from the weight of successive blows, is not the time to call retreat," he told a cheering audience of 3,500 at Ft. Bragg, N.C.
"We will stay, we will fight, and we will prevail," he said.
The president made only a passing reference to recent reports that Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top U.S. commander in Iraq, had drafted plans to sharply reduce troop numbers in the violence-plagued nation by the end of 2007. Bush said Casey was working with the new Iraqi government "on a path forward."
Praising U.S. forces for the bravery they have displayed, Bush repeatedly said that he would not set an "artificial timetable" for withdrawal.
"At this moment of vulnerability for the enemy," he said, "we will continue to strike their network. We will disrupt their operation, and we will bring their leaders to justice."
Events on the ground half a world away contrasted with the president's upbeat assessment of the conflicts.
On the outskirts of Baghdad, gunmen kidnapped Iraq's deputy electricity minister, Raad Hareth, and his 11 bodyguards as they traveled toward the city. He was released Tuesday evening with no official explanation.
Three days ago, Sunni legislator Taiseer Mashhadani and several of her bodyguards were seized in Baghdad. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
In Afghanistan this morning, a bystander was killed and dozens were injured by two bomb attacks in Kabul that were targeting Afghan soldiers or government workers. The attacks followed two bombs Tuesday that injured 11 people in the capital.
Part of Bush's speech seemed designed to respond to criticism that he had asked for little civilian sacrifice while emphasizing that the nation was waging a global war on terrorism.
The president devoted a substantial portion of his comments to describing the efforts of people who had raised money to assist military families and helped ensure that mail got to the troops.
"On this Fourth of July," he said, "I ask all Americans to take a moment and consider what you might do to support the men and women who wear our nation's uniform."
The president offered details about the U.S. airstrike that killed Zarqawi on June 7, confirming that the first allied forces to reach that Al Qaeda leader's "safe house" after its bombing by U.S. planes were special operations forces.
"And when this brutal terrorist took his final breath," Bush said, "one of the last things he saw was the face of an American soldier from Ft. Bragg, N.C.," a line greeted with a burst of cheers from his audience.
He also said that in the weeks since Zarqawi's death, U.S. and Iraqi forces had launched more than 190 raids against insurgents, captured more than 700 enemy operatives and killed about 60 others.
"We will never back down. We will never give in, and will never accept anything less than complete victory," he declared from a sun-baked stage.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, suggested in a television interview Tuesday that withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq might begin as early as September.
Appearing on NBC's "Today" show, he said September could be "a reasonable date" for a force reduction to start.
But Pace also said, "I think we need to be careful not to put specific timelines on troop turnover of responsibilities to the Iraqis."
Casey's plan, which one military official recently called "the most optimistic possibility," envisions a September start to troop withdrawal.
News of Casey's plan prompted accusations by some Democrats that Bush was trying to have it both ways — criticizing Democrats as weak on national security because they had called for a specific withdrawal plan even as the administration prepared to pull troops out.
After his speech, Bush had lunch with troops before returning to Washington. At the end of the meal, soldiers surprised the president with a red, white and blue birthday cake and a round of "Happy Birthday."
Bush turns 60 on Thursday.
In a July 4 speech to troops at Ft. Bragg, N.C., the president backs U.S. strategy and gives an upbeat assessment of Iraq and Afghanistan.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bush5jul05,1,4162485.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
By Peter G. Gosselin, Times Staff Writer
July 5, 2006
WASHINGTON — President Bush used the patriotic setting of a Fourth of July appearance before U.S. troops Tuesday to mount a feisty defense of administration strategy in the war on terrorism and to assert that America was winning the battles in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Bush portrayed the United States' enemies as on the run, as he has repeatedly since last month's U.S. killing of Abu Musab Zarqawi, Al Qaeda's top leader in Iraq. He also took a swipe at the recent efforts by congressional Democrats to set a timetable for withdrawal of American forces in Iraq.
"This moment, when the terrorists are suffering from the weight of successive blows, is not the time to call retreat," he told a cheering audience of 3,500 at Ft. Bragg, N.C.
"We will stay, we will fight, and we will prevail," he said.
The president made only a passing reference to recent reports that Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top U.S. commander in Iraq, had drafted plans to sharply reduce troop numbers in the violence-plagued nation by the end of 2007. Bush said Casey was working with the new Iraqi government "on a path forward."
Praising U.S. forces for the bravery they have displayed, Bush repeatedly said that he would not set an "artificial timetable" for withdrawal.
"At this moment of vulnerability for the enemy," he said, "we will continue to strike their network. We will disrupt their operation, and we will bring their leaders to justice."
Events on the ground half a world away contrasted with the president's upbeat assessment of the conflicts.
On the outskirts of Baghdad, gunmen kidnapped Iraq's deputy electricity minister, Raad Hareth, and his 11 bodyguards as they traveled toward the city. He was released Tuesday evening with no official explanation.
Three days ago, Sunni legislator Taiseer Mashhadani and several of her bodyguards were seized in Baghdad. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
In Afghanistan this morning, a bystander was killed and dozens were injured by two bomb attacks in Kabul that were targeting Afghan soldiers or government workers. The attacks followed two bombs Tuesday that injured 11 people in the capital.
Part of Bush's speech seemed designed to respond to criticism that he had asked for little civilian sacrifice while emphasizing that the nation was waging a global war on terrorism.
The president devoted a substantial portion of his comments to describing the efforts of people who had raised money to assist military families and helped ensure that mail got to the troops.
"On this Fourth of July," he said, "I ask all Americans to take a moment and consider what you might do to support the men and women who wear our nation's uniform."
The president offered details about the U.S. airstrike that killed Zarqawi on June 7, confirming that the first allied forces to reach that Al Qaeda leader's "safe house" after its bombing by U.S. planes were special operations forces.
"And when this brutal terrorist took his final breath," Bush said, "one of the last things he saw was the face of an American soldier from Ft. Bragg, N.C.," a line greeted with a burst of cheers from his audience.
He also said that in the weeks since Zarqawi's death, U.S. and Iraqi forces had launched more than 190 raids against insurgents, captured more than 700 enemy operatives and killed about 60 others.
"We will never back down. We will never give in, and will never accept anything less than complete victory," he declared from a sun-baked stage.
Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, suggested in a television interview Tuesday that withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq might begin as early as September.
Appearing on NBC's "Today" show, he said September could be "a reasonable date" for a force reduction to start.
But Pace also said, "I think we need to be careful not to put specific timelines on troop turnover of responsibilities to the Iraqis."
Casey's plan, which one military official recently called "the most optimistic possibility," envisions a September start to troop withdrawal.
News of Casey's plan prompted accusations by some Democrats that Bush was trying to have it both ways — criticizing Democrats as weak on national security because they had called for a specific withdrawal plan even as the administration prepared to pull troops out.
After his speech, Bush had lunch with troops before returning to Washington. At the end of the meal, soldiers surprised the president with a red, white and blue birthday cake and a round of "Happy Birthday."
Bush turns 60 on Thursday.
