Last night, President Bush addressed the nation on Iraq. Here are just a few of the lies and distortions in the speech (transcript provided by the Washington Post):*"America has an ally of growing strength in the fight against terror." As my friend Greg Priddy asked over at TPMCafe, "Does he mean the same Iraqi government which is dominated by Iranian-backed Shi'ite fundamentalist parties? (And it's highly likely those parties won enough votes last week to retain control.)" Hmmm....
*"Yet it was right to remove Saddam Hussein from power. He was given an ultimatum -- and he made his choice for war." Sure, good riddance to Saddam Hussein - no loss there. However, was it "right" in the sense of US national interests and values to do so, in the way that we did so, at the time that we did so? I have grave doubts. And what's this "ultimatum" Saddam was given? Does Bush mean the one that demanded Saddam give up weapons he didn't have? Or the one that told him to leave his country within 48 hours or be invaded? And how does any of this prove that Saddam "made his choice for war?" I'm confused.
*"If you think the terrorists would become peaceful if only America would stop provoking them, then it might make sense to leave them alone." This is the same wild oversimplication that Bush and Company have been promulgating for several years now. Let me be blunt here: there is no single group known as "the terrorists." And, to the extent that there is terrorism in the world, there was almost none of it in Iraq pre-invasion. As evil as he was, Saddam was NOT a significant "state sponsor of terrorism," except to give payments to families of Palestinian suicide/homicide bombers. The latter was really bad, but it was mainly for propaganda and certainly didn't qualify Iraq as "terrorist." This whole line of reasoning, frankly, is not worthy of the President of the United States of America.
*"Terrorist operatives conduct their campaign of murder with a set of declared and specific goals: to de-moralize free nations, to drive us out of the Middle East, to spread an empire of fear across that region, and to wage a perpetual war against America and our friends." Let's grant, for argument's sake, that this is true. So here's the question: what on earth does this have to do with why we invaded Iraq?
*"This has attracted al Qaida to Iraq." Actually, our presence is what's drawing foreign fighters - most of whom are not "al Qaida," by the way - to Iraq.
*"...if we were not fighting them in Iraq...they would be on the offense, and headed our way." That's just utterly ridiculous. What evidence is there that fighting "them" (note again that they're all lumped together) in Iraq keeps "them" from heading "our way?" Correct answer: none.
*"September 11th, 2001 required us to take every emerging threat to our country seriously." Once again, Bush exploits our country's day of tragedy to justify Dick and Dubya's Most Excellent Adventure in Iraq. Aside from being uncalled for, it's also inaccurate. What "emerging threat" existed in Iraq on 9/11? Those non-existent WMD about to strike us? Right...
*"This work has been especially difficult in Iraq -- more difficult than we expected." Actually, it was only more difficult than Dubya, Dick, and the starry-eyed "neo-cons" expected. Most analysts and generals who knew anything felt that defeating the Iraq armed forces would be easy, but the occupation and rebuilding would be very hard. Why didn't Dubya, Dick et al. listen to them?
*"[The terrorists] fear the rise of a democratic Iraq." Actually, it's not "the terrorists" who fear a democratic Iraq, but the country's Sunni majority, who fear retribution from Shi'ites and loss of political/economic power. Also, I would point out that there is a particular country that really DOES fear a democratic Iraq. Hint: its leaders are close friends of the Bush family, it is the largest oil exporter in the world, and it is the home of one Osama bin Laden (and 15 of 19 hijackers on 9/11).
*"...there are more than 125 Iraqi combat battalions fighting the enemy." I could have sworn that just a couple months ago, Gen. George Casey - the top American commander in Iraq - cited a figure of just ONE (1) Iraqi unit capable of combat without U.S. support You mean, there are 124 more Iraqi units since late September? Wow, that IS amazing progress! Heh.
*"Yet there is a difference between honest critics who recognize what is wrong, and defeatists who refuse to see that anything is right." I believe this is called a false dichotomy. Probably several other logical fallacies as well. So, how about people who "refuse to see that anything is WRONG" in Iraq, maybe even including one who declared "Mission Accomplished" almost 3 years ago? Hmmm...
*"In the months ahead, all Americans will have a part in the success of this war." Don't forget, go shopping like President Bush suggested. Oh, and if you're super rich or a major oil company, enjoy your new tax breaks while we're at war!
*"...there are only two options before our country -- victory or defeat." No middle ground, huh? Black and white. Up or down. My way or the highway. Hello, President Bush, did you ever hear of a middle ground between two extremes, or is this all part of your apocalyptic, Manichean worldview?
*"I have never been more certain that America's actions in Iraq are essential to the security of our citizens, and will lay the foundation of peace for our children and grandchildren." How's that again? I still must be missing something here. Iraq had no WMD and wasn't a threat to us, yet our actions there are making our "children and grandchildren" more secure? Even while North Korea and Iran continue with their own nuclear programs? What. Ever.
*"Next week, Americans will gather to celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah." Stop attacking Christmas, President Bush! Next thing, you'll be referring to the "holiday season." And then, who knows where that slippery slope will lead - gay marriage, condoms in our schools, or even a belief in Darwinian evolution. It's terrifying to contemplate. [Note: this last item obviously was intended as blogger-style snark and comic relief. After this Bush speech of lies and distortions, I certainly can use some of that!]