Bush's Latest Sharply Partisan Speech Very Disturbing

Yesterday, Mr. Bush invoked the names of FDR and Harry Truman, claiming that modern Democrats are little more than the party of "cut and run", and even used 9/11 in a patently offensive partisan manner by claiming that Democrats are trying to obstruct his antiterrorism efforts. This is absolutely outrageous. There are certainly a few who merely advocate an immediate withdrawal from Iraq, but they are hardly the majority of all Democrats or even Democratic lawmakers. Most Democrats realize that the army of Iraq must be able to stand on it's own before U.S. soldiers leave, otherwise an even worse sectarian bloodbath will ensue.

It is hoped that Mr. Bush's comments are merely election year nonsense talk. Democrats are not for the most part less concerned with America's security. But there appears to be a strong effort by the White House to resist any policy changes that are not working with Iraq, Afghanistan or the War On Terror. Mr. Bush has created big opposition here in the U.S. to his policies and inspired far more Islamic radicals abroad by years of failure to qiuckly win the situations in both Afghanistan and Iraq. There were 20,000 worldwide Al Qaeda members before the Iraq War and 50,000 today. Afghanistan will now need more NATO soldiers, including Americans, and U.S. forces are rumored to increase by 50,000 after the cover of the election.

Mr. Bush and some of his Republican supporters now seem to increasingly want to revert back to 1950's Joe McCarthyism of calling anyone who disagrees with them some sort of a traitor. This is unproductive for a policy to solve the problems of Iraq, Afghanistan and the War On Terror. And clinging to policies that clearly are not working only begs the question of why not try another plan. Changing the leadership of Congress is also a good new start.