If you missed this morning’s presidential press conference, be sure to read the transcript. I caught bits of it while driving and found myself cheering. This is the Bush those of us who want plain, clear talk about the threat of terrorism want to hear more often.
Q Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, former Secretary of State Colin Powell says the world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism. If a former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former Secretary of State feels this way, don’t you think that Americans and the rest of the world are beginning to wonder whether you’re following a flawed strategy?
THE PRESIDENT: If there’s any comparison between the compassion and decency of the American people and the terrorist tactics of extremists, it’s flawed logic. I simply can’t accept that. It’s unacceptable to think that there’s any kind of comparison between the behavior of the United States of America and the action of Islamic extremists who kill innocent women and children to achieve an objective, Terry.
My job, and the job of people here in Washington, D.C., is to protect this country. We didn’t ask for this war. You might remember the 2000 campaign. I don’t remember spending much time talking about what it might be like to be a Commander-in-Chief in a different kind of war. But this enemy has struck us and they want to strike us again. And we will give our folks the tools necessary to protect the country; that’s our job.
It’s a dangerous world. I wish it wasn’t that way. I wish I could tell the American people, don’t worry about it, they’re not coming again. But they are coming again. And that’s why I’ve sent this legislation up to Congress, and that’s why we’ll continue to work with allies in building a vast coalition, to protect not only ourselves, but them. The facts are, is that after 9/11, this enemy continued to attack and kill innocent people.
I happen to believe that they’re bound by a common ideology. Matter of fact, I don’t believe that, I know they are. And they want to impose that ideology throughout the broader Middle East. That’s what they have said. It makes sense for the Commander-in-Chief, and all of us involved in protecting this country to listen to the words of the enemy. And I take their words seriously. And that’s what’s going to be necessary to protect this country, is to listen carefully to what they say and stay ahead of them as they try to attack us.Be sure to read the part about the Detainee Treatment Act. I did not excerpt it here because it was a bit lengthy.
Lori Bird, what exactly are you thanking the president for…acting like a dictator?
Bush has already shown that his morality is not exactly based on christian principles. When ever Bush can he throws in words like compassion, decency and how his job is to protect the American people.
I am surprised Bush doesn’t walk around wrapped in an american flag! He is such an arrogant SOB hypocrit! He uses words like it is unacceptable to think which really means he wants people to blindly follow whatever he says because even though he is as dumb as a rock he gets guidance from his higher father.
His abuse of the english language is pathetic which is why they really do not let him speak impromptu very often and rarely to a crowd that is not prescreened. As governor of Texas he mocked a woman who was in death row when she asked him for clemency. That really showed how much class he had.
His main job is to uphold the constitution which he does not seem to have much regard for.
As far as the war in Iraq, he started the damn thing so how can he say he did not ask for it. As the top man he is expected to make decisions based on using the intelligence of the scholars and lawyers he has to advise him. Instead he ignores their advice as he ignored the advice of Colin Powell.
Terrorist have been causing problems for thousands of years around this world. Bush acts like he is the first person to ever have to deal with a terrorists and he repeats it over and over again in case you forget.
He says, “we will give our folks the tools necessary to protect the country.” It is a shame that he forgot to give the soldiers in Iraq the right equipment such as helmets and armed vehicles. Boy, Bush sure talks a good game doesn’t he? Too bad for him that there are videos of all the things he promises that he never delivers.
It’s a dangerous world, he says, and under his leadership it has become more dangerous. Our allies have not helped us because he has managed to alienate them with his diplomatic smugness.
Clinton left Bush with a lot of information on the terrorist and Bush chose to ignore most of it because he knew better. Even his father told him not to invade Iraq but Bush thought he had god on his side so it would be a cake walk. A person who ignores their own mistakes is bound to repeat them.
Bush had everyone with him after 911 and he quickly showed them who was boss. Now most of the world hates us and can you blame them?
He is the first president to stress one religion over another and he talks about the ideology of the Middle East as being a problem. Why did this country allow so many missionaries to go into Iraq to try and convert them if ideology is a problem. I guess it is only a problem if it is the ideology of the other side and everone knows how perfect christianity is expecially for the born again like Bush.
Bush does not know how to listen, he only knows how to preach and insult people. Look at the way that he treats people or reporters who ask him questions he doesn’t like? He is so use to speaking to very selective audiences that when intelligent people ask him reasonable question he uses his tough guy tone to shut them up. After all he is the decider and knows what is best. What a joke, a big f–king joke.
Bush is afraid that if the democrats come into power in November that they will hold Bush responsible for all the laws he has ignored or broken. But he did them to protect the MERR CON
pee pull. Yah, that’s what he did….
I tried to get through that entire comment, fourcats, but when I got to the part about criticizing Bush’s abuse of the English language, after struggling through your treatment of the English language in the first part of the comment, I had a hard time continuing. Sorry. Maybe I will try again later.
Lorie, you didn’t miss much. The usual “Bush blew the goodwill the world had for us after 9/11” tripe and a theory on Bush wanting to bring about the End of Times.
It’s amusing to see people with no thought condemning Bush as an idiot.
-=Mike