GW Lincoln
Fredrick Kagan writes about the tide turning in Iraq and GW's visit today, calling it the Gettysburg of This War:
Instead of flying into Baghdad and surrounding himself with his generals and the Iraqi government, Bush flew to al Asad airfield, west of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province. He brought with him his secretaries of State and Defense, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the commander of U.S. Central Command. He was met at al Asad by General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, as well as Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kemal al Maliki, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, and Vice Presidents Adel Abdul Mehdi and Tariq al Hashemi. In other words, Bush called together all of the leading political and military figures in his administration and the Iraqi government in the heart of Anbar Province. If ever there was a sign that we have turned a corner in the fight against both al Qaeda in Iraq and the Sunni insurgency, this was it.
In writing this article, Kagan hints at a comparison between Lincoln and GW Bush. Given that our nation is bitterly divided, as it was during the civil war, and given the number of souls freed by each man, the comparison may be more apt than most will admit.
Blog post #6774 in category
Defining Bush
posted 3 September 07
>Instead of flying into Baghdad and surrounding himself
>with his generals and the Iraqi government, Bush flew to
>al Asad airfield, west of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar
>Province.
Wait, they're actually trying to argue that the fact that more than four years into the war, the President has to visit an isolated military base out in the middle of the Iraqi desert because we haven't even been able to secure the capital yet is a good thing? WOW.
>If ever there was a sign that we have turned a corner...
Yes, yes, and the next six months will be critical to our victory too. We've heard this all before.
Posted by Stormy Dragon on Tuesday at 8:35 AM