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Counting it up

by Mark Gisleson

George W. Bush just held his first press conference since late July. I dunno, is it just me, or does the president sound like he's taking dictation from a little voice in his ear? I kept watching to see if he was wearing his "hearing aid," but the camera angle didn't really let you see into his ear at all.

Here are some highlights:

[W]hat they're trying to do is cause people to run. They want to kill and create chaos. That's the nature of a terrorist. That's what terrorists do: They commit suicide acts against innocent people and then expect people to say, "Well, gosh, we better not try to fight you anymore."

We're trying to determine the nature of who these people were. But I will tell you, I would assume that they're either/or and probably both Baathists and foreign terrorists.

The Baathists try to create chaos and fear because they realize that a free Iraq will deny them the excessive privileges they had under Saddam Hussein. The foreign terrorists are trying to create conditions of fear and retreat because they fear a free and peaceful state in the midst of a part of the world where terror has found recruits — that freedom is exactly what terrorists fear the most.

* *

[In reference to his landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln] I think you ought to look at my speech. I said Iraq's a dangerous place, got hard work to do, there's still more to be done.

And we had just come off a very successful military operation. I was there to thank the troops.

The "Mission Accomplished" sign, of course, was put up by the members of the USS Abraham Lincoln saying that their mission was accomplished. I know it was attributed somehow to some ingenious advance man from staff. They weren't that ingenious, by the way.

* *

What I was saying is, there's more than just the terrorist attacks that are taking place in Iraq. There's schools opening, there are hospitals opening, the electricity — the capacity to deliver electricity to the Iraqi people is back up to prewar levels, where nearly 2 million barrels of oil a day being produced for the Iraqi people.

So I was just saying we've got to look at the whole picture, that what the terrorists would like is for people to focus only on the conditions which create fear, and that is the death and the toll being taken....

The strategy remains the same. The tactics to respond to, you know, more suiciders driving cars, will alter on the ground.

* *

As a matter of fact, military action is the very last resort for us. And a reminder, when you mention Saddam Hussein, I just want to remind you that the Saddam Hussein military action took place after innumerable United Security Council resolutions were passed. Not one, two or three, but a lot.

And so this nation is very reluctant to use military force. We try to enforce doctrines peacefully or through alliances or multi- national forums. And we will continue to do so.

* *

Q: You have said that you are eager to find out whether somebody in the White House leaked the identity of an undercover CIA agent. Many experts in such investigations say you could find out if there was a leaker in the White House within hours if you asked all staff members to sign affidavits denying involvement. Why not take that step?

Bush: Well, the best person to do that so that the -- or the best group of people to do that so that you believe the answer is the professionals at the Justice Department. And they're moving forward with the investigation. It's a criminal investigation. It is an important investigation.

* *

We must never forget the lessons of September the 11th. The terrorists will strike and they will kill innocent life, not only in front of a Red Cross headquarters, they will strike and kill in America, too. We are at war.

I said right after September the 11th, this would be a different kind of war. Sometimes you'd see action and sometimes you wouldn't. But it's a different kind of war than what we're used to.

And Iraq is a front on the war on terror. And we will win this particular battle in the war on terror.

* *

[O]ne of the things that [David Kay] first found was that there was clear violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1441, material breach they call it in the diplomatic circles. Causes belie (ph), it means that would have been a cause for war. In other words, he said it's dangerous.

And we were right to enforce U.N. resolutions as well. It's important for the U.N. to be a credible organization. You're not credible if you issue resolutions and then nothing happens. Credibility comes when you say something is going to happen and then it does happen.

And in order to keep the peace, it's important for there to be credibility in this world, credibility on the side of freedom and hope.

In case you're wondering, the finally tally on actual words coming out of the president's mouth was:

terrorists - 29 mentions

terror - 17 mentions

terrorism - 1 mention

"September the 11th" - 4 mentions

Saddam Hussein – 14 mentions

Taliban - 1 mention

Osama bin Laden - zero mentions

accountability - zero mentions

87 billion dollars - zero mentions

Donald Rumsfeld - zero mentions

Iraq/Iraqis - 60 mentions

America/American/Americans - 23 mentions, mostly in his opening remarks

Posted by at October 28, 2003 12:47 PM

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