Originally published Friday, February 16, 2007 at 12:00 AM
Editorial
A roll of the dice in a war gone awry
Watching President Bush's press conference earlier this week, our minds wandered. More words. We had heard them before. What...
Watching President Bush's press conference earlier this week, our minds wandered. More words. We had heard them before. What drew our attention was the face. It was the face of a man with no confidence in what he was saying.
By sending more soldiers, the U.S. government could "help the Iraqis secure the capital." This, in turn, could provide "political breathing space" for Iraqi politicians to do the work of "reconciliation."
Those were the words. The quivering lip, the just-woke-up manner, the movement of the eyes, were saying something different. Here was a man who knew that the great gamble of his life had not paid off. He knew the people watching him knew it. He was proposing another roll of the dice at odds none too good, but that postponed admitting a major mistake.
Bush is not alone in this. Antiwar Democrats are hounding Hillary Clinton to admit she was wrong to vote for the war resolution of October 2002. She won't do it. Democrats here pressed Sen. Maria Cantwell during last year's campaign to admit her pro-war vote was wrong, and she wouldn't do it, either.
Politically, it is too painful for leaders to admit their policy choices were wrong. They would rather stand and say things that are obviously farfetched, such as the president's statement, concerning Iraq: "If we fail there, the enemy will follow us here."
Bush immediately added, "I firmly believe that" — as if his belief were a personal peculiarity.
In our fantasies, we can imagine the president saying, "I made the wrong decision about Iraq, and I'm changing course." He could do it. Millions of Americans would cheer him if he did. But he won't. In our political culture, he can't. He is stuck with the war.
And we are stuck with him until Jan. 20, 2009.
Copyright © The Seattle Times Company
UPDATE - 02:37 PM
Charles Krauthammer / Syndicated columnist: Iran's leaderless revolution: searching for a Yeltsin
NEW - 02:26 PM
Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist: The triumph and tragedy of Michael Jackson
NEW - 02:48 PM
Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist: What does a homosexual demon look like?

2009 fireworks time lapse
With strict parking rules enforced at this year's July 4th celebration on Wallingford Ave North, less cars and more spectators filled the streets.
Entertainment | Top Video | World | Offbeat Video | Sci-Tech
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
Tax tips for new independent professionals
Post a comment
nwhomes

Find a new home or condo that fits your lifestyle.
Search New Developments
Builder Directory
- Landmark Smith Tower mostly vacant
- Property taxes: Appeals shoot up in King, Snohomish Counties
- Shooting unveils very different sides of McNair
- Palin links resignation to 'higher calling' and blasts media in Facebook posting
- Former NFL MVP McNair killed
- Hard times for tourist towns means good deals for travelers
- Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
- Confessions of an Idol Addict | "American Idols" on tour: Live coverage from opening date
- Quincy Jones remembers "the biggest entertainer on the planet": Michael Jackson
- Plasma and LCD beware; OLED screens ready to go mainstream
- Seattle Mariners at Boston Red Sox: 07/05 game thread
247 - Palin links resignation to 'higher calling' and blasts media in Facebook posting
179 - Hatred for the NBA runs deep, but don't take it out on the players
137 - Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
128 - Former NFL MVP McNair killed
113 - Property taxes: Appeals shoot up is King, Snohomish Counties
104 - Tent City on campus: UW stalls decision
101 - Anti-tax rally in Olympia attracts about 1,500
69 - Mariners did their part, now they need help
46 - Megachurch pastor Rick Warren addresses US Muslims
36
- Property taxes: Appeals shoot up in King, Snohomish Counties
- Hard times for tourist towns means good deals for travelers
- Landmark Smith Tower mostly vacant
- Plasma and LCD beware; OLED screens ready to go mainstream
- The People's Pharmacy | Estrogen mimicker found in sunscreen
- Tent City on campus: UW stalls decision
- Toyota's Toyoda scolds execs for emulating U.S. car companies' mistakes
- Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
- Outdoor-theater season kicks off at Volunteer Park
- Seattle safety project: A snake shelter on Beacon Hill









