Bush to Present 'Clear Strategy' on Iraq

[Fluffybunny]

By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Facing political discord over the war in Iraq President Bush ( is seeking to reassure voters that hundreds of Americans have not died in vain, and tell the world that he has a blueprint to create a democratic nation.

Five months before the election and just five weeks before the June 30 hand-off of political power in Iraq, Bush travels late Monday to the Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., to give the first in a series of speeches about the future of Iraq.

Worldwide attention is focused on the transfer of sovereignty next month, but the president is expected to lay out a timeline in Iraq that extends until elections are held early next year.

With an eye on the future, Bush's prime-time speech will address two issues dominating U.S. efforts in Iraq: The creation of a new Iraqi interim government, whose leaders are to be announced within days, and ways to improve security in areas of Iraq still rife with violence.

Bush reviewed drafts of his speech over the weekend while traveling in Texas and Connecticut to attend parties celebrating his daughters' college graduations.

White House spokesmen said the president would present a "clear strategy" on moving forward on political, security, humanitarian and infrastructure fronts, but they provided few details.

"He needs to demonstrate an appreciation for the hole we're in," said Ivo Daalder, a foreign policy analyst at the liberal-leaning Brookings Institution. "He shouldn't minimize the problems that we are confronting. He can't give the same speech that everything is going fine and `I'm committed to seeing it through.'"

The speech comes amid harsh criticism of the Iraq policy from several quarters, including retired military.

"Somebody screwed up. And at this level and at this stage, it should be evident to everybody that they've screwed up," retired Gen. Anthony Zinni said on CBS's "60 Minutes."

Linky-Dinky

I really look forward to this, it should be interesting. Looking back over the entire fiasco, I'm thinking that the timing may have been a bit better had this been done before we invaded another country...but hey, I'm not the leader of the free world...

My guess would be that like nearly all politicians, the speech is going to be one of those well crafted 60 minute speeches that say so much, so eleoquently, without actually saying anything concrete at all. Just a lot of sound bites...I'm not saying that Bush is the only one who does this, it is pretty typical of most high level politicians....

[Chauncy]

I really look forward to this, it should be interesting. Looking back over the entire fiasco, I'm thinking that the timing may have been a bit better had this been done before we invaded another country...but hey, I'm not the leader of the free world

Like father like son I say! At the moment though I do not see a 'better' alternative to George Dubya, he's a snake but what president wasn't a snake at some point during their term.

[+joc]

lmao @ Chauncy