Bush: All Talk, No Action

Last night W told the country that the war in Iraq is one that must be won, otherwise the country will not be safe from terrorism.

As oft-stated here, we disagree--the war in Iraq is a distraction from the war on terrorism, draining critical resources away and fomenting anti-American anger abroad.

Put that aside for a moment. Let's suppose the President is right. Then what the heck are he, Cheney and Rumsfeld doing? Obviously, we aren't winning that war right now. Indeed, the Washington Post reported yesterday on a classified memo from the Marines' top intelligence officer in the region stating flat-out that Anbar province--the largest Sunni province in Iraq--is hopelessly lost.

Furthermore, in recent weeks troops have been withdrawn from fighting the war in other parts of the country so they can stabilize Baghdad before it falls into irreversible civil war as well.

So, if Bush is really right--that we have to win--then he should be sending in more troops. He should be expanding our military capability so we can cope with the war in Iraq as well as other security threats (such as the real threat from Iran, which openly armed Hizbullah in Lebanon).

Today's Post carries an op-ed piece from conservatives William Kristol and Rich Lowry saying that "more U.S. troops in Iraq would improve our chances of winning a decisive battle at a decisive moment. . . . The president should therefore order a substantial surge in overal troop levels in Iraq . . ."

Problem is, Bush isn't calling for more troops; he isn't doing anything--just staying a course that clearly isn't working.

Sometimes we hear from Republican friends that they admire Bush for being "steadfast," "resolute," blah, blah, blah.

As many Americans are finally figuring out, that's a bunch of BS. Bush doesn't have the courage of his convictions. He knows politically that asking for more troops would further hurt his standing and that of his party. So rather than do what it takes to win this war that supposedly we can't afford to lose, he chooses the path of lesser resistance.

And that, as much as anything else, is why this President will go down in history as one of our nation's worst.