Mr. Bush was right when he said last night that the aftermath of withdrawal would be bloody and frightening, but that is a product of his invasion and his gross mismanagement of the aftermath. Mr. Bush's endless insistence on staying the course will only make Iraq more bloody and frightening.
All through his life, Mr. Bush has been making messes and his family and his family's friends have had to "clean up his messes" behind him. This is how he has lived his whole life and apparently his Iraq venture is right in line with his character.
Before entering Iraq, Mr. Bush was told about the consequences of going to war. He knew that when we put the first foot in Iraq we would own it. I read this article in November 2002: The Fifty-first State? Atlantic Magazine when it was first talked about on C-SPAN's Washington Journal.
Going to war with Iraq would mean shouldering all the responsibilities of an occupying power the moment victory was achieved. These would include running the economy, keeping domestic peace, and protecting Iraq's borders-and doing it all for years, or perhaps decades. Are we ready for this long-term relationship?
So Bush-the-Decider created the Iraq War. Bush-the-Decider brought the catastrophic carnage to Iraq that is occurring now. And it is Bush-the-Decider and his Republican stooges, who will be responsible for the bloody, frightening, catastropic carnage when we leave Iraq.
Mr. Bush, you are the one who DECIDED to go to Iraq. Mr. Bush, stand up and ACCEPT your responsibility for what you've DECIDED.
And NOW, Mr. Bush-the-Decider, quit trying to shift the blame to the Democrats for YOUR DECISION. Getting out now wouldn't make for a loss ..... the war's been lost for a long, long time.