Bush on Iraq war: Don't forget 9/11

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Trying to rally a war-weary nation, President Bush defended the Iraq war last night by evoking memories of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Calling the Iraq operation "difficult and dangerous," Bush said "the lessons of September 11" require Americans to stand firm against an enemy that ignores the rules of conventional war.

Although Bush has acknowledged there's no known link between Iraq and the Sept. 11 attacks, he implied a connection with repeated references to Sept. 11 and Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network. He said Iraq is a central front in the war on terrorism in part because the insurgency is led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who has sworn allegiance to bin Laden:

"The only way our enemies can succeed is if we forget the lessons of September 11, if we abandon the Iraqi people to men like Zarqawi and if we yield the future of the Middle East to men like bin Laden. For the sake of our nation's security, this will not happen on my watch."

He referred to bin Laden or Sept. 11 six times in his 30-minute speech. He said bin Laden has cast the conflict in Iraq as the "third world war" and has declared that "the whole world is watching this war."

The president delivered his remarks from Fort Bragg, N.C., in a gymnasium packed with soldiers from the mammoth military installation and airmen from nearby Pope Air Force Base. In a sign of White House concern over declining public support for the war, presidential aides asked the major television networks to carry the speech live.

Supporting the troops


President Bush asked Americans to log onto www.americasupportsyou.mil, a Department of Defense Web site, and register support for the troops. In addition to waving flags and hanging ribbons over the upcoming Independence Day weekend, Bush said, why not send a message to a local member of the armed forces?

The Defense Department first launched the site Nov. 19, hoping to create an electronic wave of support for those fighting in Iraq. The Web site features a red, white and blue mix of gadgetry that allows someone to send an en masse e-mail to the troops. Or an "America Supports You" logo can be ordered to be affixed on a baseball hat, a water bottle or a T-shirt.

But a quick perusal of the site last night shows that many features are not available, including messages back from the troops. The pages are chock-full of good news and smiling pictures. Dissenting views on the war are not allowed.

Chicago Tribune

The White House titled his remarks a discussion on the "War on Terror," not Iraq. But the speech was timed to coincide with the first anniversary of the transfer of power from the U.S. military to a provisional Iraqi government.

Departing from his usual upbeat assessment of the war's progress, Bush offered a sober report on a conflict that features almost daily attacks with explosive devices and car bombs by an insurgency that's claimed more than 1,700 American lives, including two more yesterday.

"Like most Americans, I see the images of violence and bloodshed. Every picture is horrifying — and the suffering is real," said Bush, who appeared near tears at the end of the speech.

"Amid all this violence, I know Americans ask the question: Is the sacrifice worth it? It is worth it, and it is vital to the security of our country."

He vowed that the American people "will not allow our future to be determined by car bombers and assassins," a reference to insurgents he blamed for "creating chaos for the camera."

The president dismissed setting a timetable for withdrawal, but he assured Americans that he intends to bring the troops home as soon as Iraqi forces are ready to take over.

"Our strategy can be summed up this way: As the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down," he said. "We have made progress, but we have a lot more work to do."

"We are fighting against men with blind hatred — and armed with lethal weapons — who are capable of any atrocity," he said. "They take innocent lives. ... They are trying to shake our will in Iraq — just as they tried to shake our will on September 11, 2001. They will fail."

He said a defeat for U.S. troops there would "yield the future of the Middle East to men like bin Laden."

Bush dusted off language from the Cold War, decrying terrorists who "murder in the name of a totalitarian ideology that hates freedom, rejects tolerance, and despises all dissent."

The CIA recently expressed concern that since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, Iraq has become a better training ground for terrorists than Afghanistan was when it served as the home base for bin Laden and al-Qaida. In Afghanistan, Islamic fanatics trained in desert hide-outs; in Iraq, they're getting real-world experience in urban warfare against the U.S. military, CIA analysts concluded.

"We fight today because terrorists want to attack our country and kill our citizens, and Iraq is where they are making their stand," Bush said in the only passage of the 30-minute speech that drew applause from troops.

In addition to rejecting the idea of a timetable for withdrawal he dismissed alternative approaches that call for the deployment of more troops, as some in Congress have advocated.

"Setting an artificial timetable would send the wrong message to the Iraqis, who need to know that America will not leave before the job is done," he said. "Sending more Americans would undermine our strategy of encouraging Iraqis to take the lead in this fight."

At a time when military recruiting has suffered, Bush urged Americans to show their support for the troops on July Fourth by flying flags, sending letters to the troops or helping military families.

Polls have found that Americans have become increasingly skeptical about the administration's rationale for war and claims of progress in Iraq. Bush's personal standing has fallen along with support for the war, and his approval rating is now well below 50 percent in most polls.

Democrats dismissed the speech as more of the same and accused Bush of erroneously linking Iraq to Sept. 11.

" 'Staying the course,' as the president advocates, is neither sustainable nor likely to lead to the success we all seek," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said. "The president's numerous references to September 11th did not provide a way forward in Iraq; they only served to remind the American people that our most dangerous enemy, namely Osama bin Laden, is still on the loose."

MoveOn, an anti-war group that claims to have more than 3 million members, began airing a television ad last night declaring that "it's time to come home" from Iraq. The ad quotes Bush saying in April that "we're making really good progress," then contrasts those remarks with a more recent assessment by Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb.

"The White House is completely disconnected from reality," Hagel said earlier this month in an interview with U.S. News & World Report.

Before his speech, Bush met privately with relatives of soldiers killed in Iraq.

At least 89 soldiers and airmen from Fort Bragg and its sister air base have died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Fort Bragg, home of the storied 82nd Airborne Division, has about 9,300 troops in Iraq.

Information from The Washington Post and Gannett Newspapers is included.