In an interview with the Times Online, President Bush makes some pretty unusual admissions. He said he regrets the bitter divisions over the war in Iraq, and how America has been perceived around the world. The President blames his tone and rhetoric in the past as the cause for some of the misperceptions that exist about him.
He said in retrospect it was a mistake to use rhetoric like “dead or alive” and “bring them on,” because it left the impression with some that he was a man hungry for war.
Phrases such as “bring them on” or “dead or alive”, he said, “indicated to people that I was, you know, not a man of peace”. He said that he found it very painful “to put youngsters in harm’s way”. He added: “I try to meet with as many of the families as I can. And I have an obligation to comfort and console as best as I possibly can. I also have an obligation to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain.”
In my opinion his using the phrase “bring them on” in response to the rising insurgency in Iraq was definitely inappropriate, but not his use of the phrase “dead or alive.” He made that statement in reference to the hunt for Osama bin Laden in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. He said bin Laden was “Wanted: Dead or Alive” which was quite appropriate and still holds true today.
I think the media has been incredibly unfair to President Bush and I believe history will be kind to him. There are plenty of people willing to criticize, but no one in the media is ever willing to acknowledge that President Bush’s aggressive strategy of combating terrorism has kept America safe. We have not been attacked since 9/11 and that’s a direct result of the United States kicking ass and taking hyphenated names around the world.
Instead of worrying about approval ratings and poll numbers, President Bush made the tough decisions, and did whatever was necessary to keep America safe.
A real leader does what he thinks is right even when it’s not popular.
-Chris Jones
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