Bush buying time

by George S. Hishmeh

These are bad times for George W. Bush and his administration, now in the first year of its second term. In the last few days, it has marshalled all its big stars to defend its failing policy in Iraq, judging by the high casualty count among Americans and Iraqis as a result of the virulent insurgency and the dwindling support from the American public.

But the administration's top guns did more harm than good in their defence of the American strategy, which this week marked the first anniversary of transferring sovereignty to the Iraqis, an otherwise commendable step.

Vice President Dick Cheney claimed that the relentless insurgency was in "its last throes", a phrase that he had to defend time and again without much success because there was little to substantiate it.

That was also the case of Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld, who has again been asked by Senator Ted Kennedy to resign. He declared: "We're not going to win against the insurgency. The Iraqi people are going to win against the insurgency. That insurgency could go on for any number of years. Insurgencies tend to go on five, six, eight, 10, 12 years." (On second thought, he, however, confirmed that the US military has been in contact with some elements within the insurgency, composed mostly of homegrown fighters.)

The downbeat feeling about the war in Iraq, now in its third year, and the daily casualties - 1,740 US soldiers have died compared to 12,000 Iraqi civilians - have been reflected in the comments of American commanders and the opinion polls, factors that probably prompted the American president to feel the need to reassure Americans of the wisdom of his course. The White House spokesman put it this way ahead of the presidential address appropriately staged from within a military base in North Carolina, which has sent more than 9,000 to Iraq: "In a time of testing like this, it's important to let our troops know that the American people stand firmly with them as they seek to complete the mission. So the president looks forward to going to Fort Bragg (Tuesday) night to speak before the men and women who have been on the front lines in the war on terrorism. This is a time of testing. It is a critical moment in Iraq. The terrorists are seeking to shake our will and weaken our resolve. They know that they cannot win unless we abandon the mission before it is complete."

The uncertainty here was evident in the lack of security and the unremarkable efforts at nation-building in the devastated country where war has been raging for 25 months. Opinion polls have underlined the dismal mood shared by many Americans of all walks of life, although none saw the situation yet as analogous to Vietnam, where Americans had to withdraw from a devastating conflict unceremoniously nearly 30 years ago.

General John P. Abizaid, the US commander in Iraq, revealed a disturbing feeling among his troops, and in one instance contradicted Cheney's view about the strength of the insurgency there. He told Congress last week: "When my soldiers ask the question whether or not they've got support from the American people or not, that worries me, and they are starting to do that."

A Washington Post-ABC News poll found that most Americans do not believe the administration's claims that impressive gains are being made against the insurgency and a narrow majority, 52 per cent, believes that the war has contributed to the long-term security of the United States, a five point increase from earlier this month. In fact, a large majority, about six in 10 people, were said to believe that the United States is "bogged down" in Iraq.

More alarming was the finding that a majority - 51 per cent - disapproves of the way Bush is handling his job as president, compared to 48 per cent who approve, the same as last month. Specifically on Iraq, 56 per cent disapprove of his handling of the situation vs. 43 per cent who approve.

Senator John Kerry, the Democratic presidential candidate who lost to Bush last year, urged Bush in an op-ed article published in The New York Times hours before Bush was to make his speech to "tell the truth to the American people (because) erasing suspicions that the occupation is indefinite is critical to eroding support for the insurgency".

In two television interviews hours before Bush spoke, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was more upbeat, choosing to focus on the political gains: the Iraqis had elections, formed a new government and "are now about to write a new constitution and then they will have elections for a permanent government". She urged the Americans to be more patient.

But in his speech, Bush refused to budge from his position, rejecting calls for a timetable for withdrawal, failing to realise that Iraq has become a breeding ground for a fundamentalist insurgency that is being beefed up daily from neighbouring countries.

"Is the sacrifice worth it?" he asked in his 30-minute address that revealed nothing new and failed to recall that the reason for the war was the search for weapons of mass destruction. "It is worth it and it is vital to the security of our country," Bush told a nation that is increasingly becoming doubtful of his rationale, especially that the cost has so far reached $200 billion.

At best, the president may have bought some time, but in the end, he may still realise that the American military presence is harming the American image in the Arab world and the sooner they leave the better.

This article was published in the Friday-Saturday, July 1-2, 2005 edition of the Jordan Times. It is used here with permission.