blueturk
12-07-2006, 04:27 PM
So you've started a war based on lies and you've almost single-handedly made your party lose control of Congress.So if a bipartisan panel tells you that you and your cronies have totally fucked things up, what do you do? If you're George W. Bush, you do what you've always done. You live in your own little world where you are always right....
By BRIAN KNOWLTON
Published: December 7, 2006
WASHINGTON, Dec. 7 — President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain on Thursday welcomed the new bipartisan report on Iraq, but the president seemed to resist the idea of withdrawing most combat troops, saying that if the United States fails to establish a stable and secure Iraq, it will haunt Americans for years.
Appearing at an hourlong news conference with his closest ally in the Iraq war, President Bush was largely noncommittal about the group’s 79 recommendations — which include withdrawing most combat units by early 2008.
He called the report “very constructive” and “worthy of study,” but said that neither Congress nor the administration would accept all of the panel’s proposals. His policy going forward, Mr. Bush reiterated, would rely not just on the study group’s recommendations but on those being formulated by the Pentagon, the State Department and the National Security Council.
As the two leaders met at the White House, the study group’s co-chairmen, James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton, urged Congress to endorse the panel’s call for a sharp change in course in the Iraq war during an appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mr. Hamilton called for a “very vigorous oversight of the war effort.”
The study group’s report, released on Wednesday, described the situation in Iraq as “grave and deteriorating,” By contrast, the president described it as “unsettling” in his remarks to reporters. When a British reporter asked him whether his choice of words showed that he was “still in denial about how bad things are in Iraq,” Mr. Bush made his feelings clear.
“Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to the families” of those who have died. “I also believe we’re going to succeed. I believe we’ll prevail,” he said.
“One way to assure failure is just to quit, is not to adjust, and say it’s just not worth it,” he added. “If we were to fail, that failed policy will come to hurt generations of Americans in the future.”
Mr. Blair did not sharply diverge from the president’s analysis. He said the report made important points to pursue: the need for the coalition to bolster the Iraqi government, for regional powers to play a greater role, and for Israeli-Palestinian peace to be actively pursued in order to ease one of the most acute problems in the region.
While the study group’s report held out almost no hope for a military victory in Iraq, Mr. Bush disagreed.
“I believe we’ll prevail,” he said. Of his talks with Mr. Blair, he said, “We agree that victory in Iraq is important.”
The report from the 10-member panel calls for the United States to open negotiations on stabilizing Iraq with Syria and Iran – a proposal advanced last month by Mr. Blair in a major policy speech.
But Mr. Bush cautioned that, “If people come to the table to discuss Iraq they need to come understanding their responsibilities to not fund terrorists, to help this young democracy survive, to help with the economics of the country.
“And if people are not committed,” the president added, “if Syria and Iran is not committed to that concept, then they shouldn’t bother to show up.”
Mr. Blair, for his part, said that the report “offers a strong way forward.”
Bringing peace to Israel and the Palestinians, he said, would “send a very strong signal not just to the region but to the whole world that we are even-handed and just in the application of our values.”
Mr. Bush said that Mr. Blair would soon be traveling to the region for talks with both sides, and he gave the visit his strong endorsement.
Some British press reports said Mr. Blair had been planning to press the president to drop his opposition to a unity government in Palestine that involves Hamas, the militant group, in order to move forward on peace talks. Talks between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, to form a Palestinian unity government reached an impasse late last month.
Mr. Blair spoke of the need for “an empowered Palestinian government with whom everyone can negotiate,” but said that peace talks could go forward only “on the basis that everyone accepts the other’s right to exist.” That would require Hamas to drop its commitment to Israel’s destruction.
In a major speech on Nov. 13, Mr. Blair called for a “whole Middle East strategy” centered around a fresh focus on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He offered a “partnership” to Syria and Iran provided that they refused to support terrorists and halted any efforts to obtain nuclear weapons.
But at least on Iran, Mr. Bush did not swerve from earlier pronouncements.
“We have made it clear to the Iranians that there is a possibility of change to U.S. policy,” he said, and that was “that if they would like to engage the United States, that they’ve got to verifiably suspend their enrichment program.”
The embrace of the Iraq Study Group’s call for progress on Israeli-Palestinian peace could also be complicated by Israeli reservations.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Thursday rejected the panel’s conclusion that a concerted effort to resolve conflicts between Israel and its neighbors would help stabilize Iraq. Mr. Olmert also rejected the panel’s call for Israel to open negotiations with Syria, but said that Israelis wanted "with all our might" to reopen peace talks with the Palestinians.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/world/middleeast/08prexycnd.html?em&ex=1165640400&en=3132cd3a976fca57&ei=5087%0A
By BRIAN KNOWLTON
Published: December 7, 2006
WASHINGTON, Dec. 7 — President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain on Thursday welcomed the new bipartisan report on Iraq, but the president seemed to resist the idea of withdrawing most combat troops, saying that if the United States fails to establish a stable and secure Iraq, it will haunt Americans for years.
Appearing at an hourlong news conference with his closest ally in the Iraq war, President Bush was largely noncommittal about the group’s 79 recommendations — which include withdrawing most combat units by early 2008.
He called the report “very constructive” and “worthy of study,” but said that neither Congress nor the administration would accept all of the panel’s proposals. His policy going forward, Mr. Bush reiterated, would rely not just on the study group’s recommendations but on those being formulated by the Pentagon, the State Department and the National Security Council.
As the two leaders met at the White House, the study group’s co-chairmen, James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton, urged Congress to endorse the panel’s call for a sharp change in course in the Iraq war during an appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mr. Hamilton called for a “very vigorous oversight of the war effort.”
The study group’s report, released on Wednesday, described the situation in Iraq as “grave and deteriorating,” By contrast, the president described it as “unsettling” in his remarks to reporters. When a British reporter asked him whether his choice of words showed that he was “still in denial about how bad things are in Iraq,” Mr. Bush made his feelings clear.
“Make no mistake about it, I understand how tough it is, sir. I talk to the families” of those who have died. “I also believe we’re going to succeed. I believe we’ll prevail,” he said.
“One way to assure failure is just to quit, is not to adjust, and say it’s just not worth it,” he added. “If we were to fail, that failed policy will come to hurt generations of Americans in the future.”
Mr. Blair did not sharply diverge from the president’s analysis. He said the report made important points to pursue: the need for the coalition to bolster the Iraqi government, for regional powers to play a greater role, and for Israeli-Palestinian peace to be actively pursued in order to ease one of the most acute problems in the region.
While the study group’s report held out almost no hope for a military victory in Iraq, Mr. Bush disagreed.
“I believe we’ll prevail,” he said. Of his talks with Mr. Blair, he said, “We agree that victory in Iraq is important.”
The report from the 10-member panel calls for the United States to open negotiations on stabilizing Iraq with Syria and Iran – a proposal advanced last month by Mr. Blair in a major policy speech.
But Mr. Bush cautioned that, “If people come to the table to discuss Iraq they need to come understanding their responsibilities to not fund terrorists, to help this young democracy survive, to help with the economics of the country.
“And if people are not committed,” the president added, “if Syria and Iran is not committed to that concept, then they shouldn’t bother to show up.”
Mr. Blair, for his part, said that the report “offers a strong way forward.”
Bringing peace to Israel and the Palestinians, he said, would “send a very strong signal not just to the region but to the whole world that we are even-handed and just in the application of our values.”
Mr. Bush said that Mr. Blair would soon be traveling to the region for talks with both sides, and he gave the visit his strong endorsement.
Some British press reports said Mr. Blair had been planning to press the president to drop his opposition to a unity government in Palestine that involves Hamas, the militant group, in order to move forward on peace talks. Talks between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, to form a Palestinian unity government reached an impasse late last month.
Mr. Blair spoke of the need for “an empowered Palestinian government with whom everyone can negotiate,” but said that peace talks could go forward only “on the basis that everyone accepts the other’s right to exist.” That would require Hamas to drop its commitment to Israel’s destruction.
In a major speech on Nov. 13, Mr. Blair called for a “whole Middle East strategy” centered around a fresh focus on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He offered a “partnership” to Syria and Iran provided that they refused to support terrorists and halted any efforts to obtain nuclear weapons.
But at least on Iran, Mr. Bush did not swerve from earlier pronouncements.
“We have made it clear to the Iranians that there is a possibility of change to U.S. policy,” he said, and that was “that if they would like to engage the United States, that they’ve got to verifiably suspend their enrichment program.”
The embrace of the Iraq Study Group’s call for progress on Israeli-Palestinian peace could also be complicated by Israeli reservations.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Thursday rejected the panel’s conclusion that a concerted effort to resolve conflicts between Israel and its neighbors would help stabilize Iraq. Mr. Olmert also rejected the panel’s call for Israel to open negotiations with Syria, but said that Israelis wanted "with all our might" to reopen peace talks with the Palestinians.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/world/middleeast/08prexycnd.html?em&ex=1165640400&en=3132cd3a976fca57&ei=5087%0A