Finally
President Bush finally addressed two key criticisms of the War on Terror last night and gave our terrorist enemies (and the cabal of liberal elites who support them) some food for thought.
W. hit two key points: terrorist causation and American defeatism.
First, he directly confronted the accusation of many a liberal that the Afghanistan and Iraqi conflicts are leading to an upsurge in terrorism and anti-Americanism which, if not our waging of war, would not exist:
Since the removal of Saddam, this war, like other wars in our history, has been difficult. The mission of American troops in urban raids and desert patrols, fighting Saddam loyalists and foreign terrorists, has brought danger and suffering and loss. This loss has caused sorrow for our whole nation — and it has led some to ask if we are creating more problems than we’re solving.
That is an important question, and the answer depends on your view of the war on terror. 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 not the threat I see. I see a global terrorist movement that exploits Islam in the service of radical political aims — a vision in which books are burned, and women are oppressed, and all dissent is crushed. 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. These terrorists view the world as a giant battlefield — and they seek to attack us wherever they can. This has attracted al Qaeda to Iraq, where they are attempting to frighten and intimidate America into a policy of retreat.
Exactly. The terrorist thugs of Al Qaeda and other fanatical diasporas would be hellbent to kill us even if (and I would add especially if) we left them alone. 9/11, the ‘93 World Trade Center bombing, the U.S.S. Cole, all testify that the terrorists intend to attack us unless we forsake our freedom and democratic way of life. We have no choice. You cannot pacify a terrorist mindset.
Bush also attacked the defeatism of the Democratic party and their anti-war allies and outlined the consequences of leaving Iraq before the country is sufficiently stabilized and democratized:
Defeatism may have its partisan uses, but it is not justified by the facts. For every scene of destruction in Iraq, there are more scenes of rebuilding and hope. For every life lost, there are countless more lives reclaimed. And for every terrorist working to stop freedom in Iraq, there are many more Iraqis and Americans working to defeat them. My fellow citizens: Not only can we win the war in Iraq, we are winning the war in Iraq.
It is also important for every American to understand the consequences of pulling out of Iraq before our work is done. We would abandon our Iraqi friends and signal to the world that America cannot be trusted to keep its word. We would undermine the morale of our troops by betraying the cause for which they have sacrificed. We would cause the tyrants in the Middle East to laugh at our failed resolve, and tighten their repressive grip. We would hand Iraq over to enemies who have pledged to attack us and the global terrorist movement would be emboldened and more dangerous than ever before. To retreat before victory would be an act of recklessness and dishonor, and I will not allow it.
Reckless and dishonorable are two adjectives that aptly describe Harry Reid and the Democrats (excluding Joe Lieberman) who want to pull out and who denigrate the effort of our solidiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Bush’s speech was a welcome sound–a triumphant declaration that we are winning and that Iraq and the American people are worth the fight.