Bush: Iraq War "Noble" And "Necessary"

President Marks Fifth Anniversary Of U.S. Invasion Touting Success Of Troop Surge

(CBS/AP)  Five years after launching the U.S. invasion of Iraq, President George W. Bush Wednesday made some of his most expansive claims of success in the fighting there.

"The battle in Iraq is noble, it is necessary, and it is just. And with your courage the battle in Iraq will end in victory," he told an audience of Pentagon brass, soldiers and diplomats.

The president strongly signaled that he won't order troop withdrawals beyond those already planned because he refuses to "jeopardize the hard-fought gains" of the past year.

He added that last year's troop buildup has turned Iraq around and produced "the first large-scale Arab uprising against Osama bin Laden."

Mr. Bush also said he has no doubts about launching the unpopular war in Iraq despite the "high cost in lives and treasure," arguing that retreat now would embolden Iran and provide al Qaeda with money for weapons of mass destruction to attack the United States.

Anti-war protests and vigils were planned throughout the day around the nation. In Ohio, more than 20 different vigils, rallies, marches and other events were planned.

In Washington, D.C., a marching band led protesters down the street near the National Mall and around the IRS building before dozens of demonstrators gathered at the entrance.

Protesters blocked the main entrance for a time, but no federal workers appeared to be trying to use those doors. Police detained 13 people who sat down at a side entrance.

The demonstrators said they were focusing on the IRS because it gathers taxes that are used to fund the war.

Mr. Bush warned against backsliding from the recent progress fueled by the increase of 30,000 troops ordered more than a year ago.

The president said "having come so far and achieved so much, we are not going to let this happen."

"The challenge in the period ahead is to consolidate the gains we have made and seal the extremists' defeat," he said. "We have learned through hard experience what happens when we pull our forces back too fast the terrorists and extremists step in, fill the vacuum, establish safe havens and use them to spread chaos and carnage."

Mr. Bush criticized those who "still call for retreat" in the face of what he called undeniable successes.

Democrats took a different view.

"On this grim milestone, it is worth remembering how we got into this situation, and thinking about how best we can get out," said Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. "The tasks that remain in Iraq - to bring an end to sectarian conflict, to devise a way to share political power and to create a functioning government that is capable of providing for the needs of the Iraqi people - are tasks that only the Iraqis can complete."

Mr. Bush defended the war as necessary at first, now, and for an undefined future until Iraq is stable enough to stand on its own.

"The surge has done more than turn the situation in Iraq around it has opened the door to a major strategic victory in the broader war on terror," the president said. "In Iraq, we are witnessing the first large-scale Arab uprising against Osama bin Laden, his grim ideology, and his terror network. And the significance of this development cannot be overstated."

The president's address sought to shift the nation's focus from economic ills and put Iraq back on the front burner, part of a series of events the White House planned around the anniversary and next month's report from the top U.S. figures in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker.

However, Americans continue to think the results of the war have not been worth the loss of American lives and the other costs of attacking Iraq, according to a new CBS News poll.

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Read more details about the poll.

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It is widely believed that the president will endorse a recommendation from Petraeus for no additional troop reductions, beyond those already scheduled, until at least September. This pause in drawdowns would be designed to assess the impact of this round before allowing more.

Petraeus, the top American commander in Iraq, told CBS News correspondent Cami McCormick that he will make recommendations on troop levels to Congress next month based on "the feel of people... who have been here for some time."

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Listen To Cami's Interview With Gen. Petraeus

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Five of 20 Brigade Combat Teams - a Marine Expeditionary Unit and two Marine battalions - are scheduled to leave by July, reports McCormick. Already, two Army brigades have departed Iraq, one based in Diyala province, the other in Baghdad.

Interviewed by McCormick, Gen. Petraeus, seen at left, also cautioned against seeing recent progress in Iraq as a sign that al Qaeda was defeated, saying the terror group "remains a very lethal enemy... capable of lashing out at any given time."

Vice President Dick Cheney, who just completed a two-day visit to Iraq, said the administration won't "be blown off course" by continued strong opposition to the war in the United States.

Cheney compared the administration's task now to Abraham Lincoln's during the Civil War. "He never would have succeeded if he hadn't had a clear objective, a vision for where he wanted to go, and he was willing to withstand the slings and arrows of the political wars in order to get there," Cheney said of Lincoln in an interview broadcast Wednesday on ABC's "Good Morning America."

The U.S. has about 158,000 troops in Iraq. That number is expected to drop to 140,000 by summer in drawdowns meant to erase all but about 8,000 troops from last year's increase.

Mr. Bush has successfully defied efforts by the Democratic-led Congress to force larger troop withdrawals. Still, with just 10 months before he hands off the war to a new president, Mr. Bush is concerned about his legacy on Iraq.

Both Democratic candidates have said they would begin withdrawing forces quickly if elected. Only expected GOP nominee John McCain has indicated he planned to continue Mr. Bush's strategy of bringing troops home only as conditions warrant.

The surge was meant to tamp down sectarian violence in Iraq so that the country's leaders would have time to advance legislation considered key to reconciliation between rival Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish communities. But the gains on the battlefield have not been matched by dramatic political progress, and violence again may be increasing.

Mr. Bush appeared to be referring to recent cooperation by local Iraqis with the U.S. military against the group known as al Qaeda in Iraq, a mostly homegrown, Sunni-based insurgency. Experts question how closely - or even whether - the group is connected to the international al Qaeda network. As for bin Laden, he is rarely heard from and is believed to be hiding in Pakistan.

As of Tuesday, at least 3,990 members of the U.S. military have died in the war, which has cost the U.S. roughly $500 billion. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglizt and Harvard University public finance expert Linda Bilmes have estimated the eventual cost at $3 trillion when all the expenses, including long-term care for veterans, are calculated.

Without specifics, Mr. Bush decried those who have "exaggerated estimates of the costs of this war."

"War critics can no longer credibly argue that we are losing in Iraq, so now they argue the war costs too much," he said.

[yongamerica]

The WAR WAS NECESSARY??
And did god tell you this personally GW? Or is Cheney your god and he''s the one that told you to do this?

Here is an example of what a religious zealot can do when his political machine owns the government. Its like a small town being over-run and controlled by a mafia.

Thanks Senators & Representatives for not listening to your constituents and acting on your party lines. Thank you for failing to do your job. This includes you Hillary.

F R E E the Constitution!

[joyreno1]

We kill more people on our highways than die defending their beliefs in Iraq. America will always defend freedon & war against terrorists.
NO one wants their sons & daughters to die in battle, no one wants to loose a loved one on the highways, they volunteer to join the military. God bless President Bush & God help us next election

[kidofstl]

I read where Vice Pres. Cheney''s view of America''s low opinion of the war is "SO?" I guess that 2 letter word spoke in masses how our top officials feel about the loss of young life in this terrible conflict. I admit I don''t personally know anyone that fought in Iraq, yet when I read the papers and just see the pictures of those who died, just kids ages 18, 19, 20 that never even got a chance to live their lives less know the other men and women, my eyes swell up in tears. I personally don''t know how Bush nor Cheney can sleep at night. Maybe it''s because NONE of their kin folk are there.

[tbweb]

Bush: Iraq War "Noble" And "Necessary"

The "original" U.S. mission in Iraq was to remove Saddam and find Weapons of Mass Destruction. Saddam was removed, no Weapons of Mass Destruction were found, but more importantly the U.S. admitted Iraq didn''t have WMD in the context, type and quantity the U.S. was looking for. Some will argue the "Gas" Saddam used on the Kurds was WMD but this is not what the U.S. had in mind.

So, with that as a background, why is the U.S. still in Iraq? Many have offered to provide security and help rebuild Iraq including the U.N., so why won''t the U.S. let them? Why does the U.S. insist that it provide Iraqi security and rebuild Iraq? Why is the U.S. using Iran as an excuse to stay in Iraq and if Iran was such a big consideration then why did the U.S. remove Saddam who was an opponent of Iran? Finally the biggest question of all, why are the U.S. Tax Payers footing the bill for the Iraq mis-adventure all by themselves? When Saddam was removed and no WMD were found the U.S. should have withdrawn from Iraq.

[ajmarine1]

your numbers don''''t mean much unless you present them all.

Posted by bobnjersey at 06:52 PM : Mar 20, 2008





TOTAL U.S. MILITARY DEATHS FOR THE PAST TWENTY YEARS, includes peace time accidents and military engagements with the enemy.

These are some rather eye-opening facts: Since the start of the war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan , the sacrifice has been enormous. In the time period from the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 through now, we have lost over 3000 military personnel to enemy action and accidents.
As tragic as the loss of any member of the US Armed Forces is, consider the
following statistics - the annual fatalities of military members while actively serving in the armed forces from 1980 through 2006:
---------------------------------------------------
1980 ..........2,392
1981 ........ 2,380
1984 ......... 1,999
1988 ......... 1,819
1989 ......... 1,636
1990 ......... 1,508
1991 ..........1,787
1992 ..........1,293
1993 ..........1,213
1994 ..........1,075
1995 ..........2,465
1996 ........ 2,318 8 Clinton years @ 13,417 deaths
1997 .......... 817
1998 ........ 2,252
1999 ......... 1,984
2000 ..........1,983
2001 .......... 890
2002 ..........1,007 7 Bush years @ 9,016 deaths
2003 ......... 1,410
2004 ......... 1,887
2005 ......... 919
2006.......... 920

[bobnjersey]

[Any survey data can be twisted around to support your position depending on how you word the question or filter the data.]
[Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 07:05 PM : Mar 20, 2008]

which is exactly what you''re doing right now.

[bobnjersey]

[and the Democrats had no problem with nation building in Bosnia or Somalia. If it were Al Gore leading us into war, they would feel completely different about it.]
[Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 06:59 PM : Mar 20, 2008]

somalia began at the end of 2002 ... under bush sr.

[bobnjersey]

[Would a liberal admit any mistakes....havent seen it yet!]
[Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 06:58 PM : Mar 20, 2008]

you gotta open your eyes in order to see.

how many suffer from serious head injury, severed limb, para/quadrapalegic, ptsd, depression, etc ... bush years vs. clinton?

what''s the long term estimated cost to care for the seriously injured ... many for the rest of their lives ... bush years vs. clinton?

and there more soldiers in the military during clintons term, no?

[bobnjersey]

[But did you know under Clintons 8 years we had 7500 troops killed and we didnt fight any major wars.]
[Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 06:39 PM : Mar 20, 2008]

your numbers don''t mean much unless you present them all.

[blkpresident]

Mr. President:

You are absolutely right about the Iraq War, sir, and only one of the remaining three candidates can lead on that effort. We have a clear choice here: a girl, an OLD man or Obama.

[ajmarine1]

1

[leftyintexas]

It should be pointed out that 20,000 of our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan for Doofus and cheney are not U.S.citizens. Our country has to recruit foreigners to fight our wars for us. In WWII, Hitler did the same thing too when he bit off more than he could chew. These neo-Nazi thugs are no different.''Noble''? Ha! I guess the coward didn''t think the Viet Nam war was ''noble'' since he ran away from it.

[finewoven]

I''m not voting for McCain. I used to admire the guy but the fact he thinks Al Quaeda (Sunni fanatics) are being trained in Iran (a Shiite government) after five years of this debacle clearly shows he doesn''t have a clue. He made the same mistake TWICE on one trip. HE IMMEDIATELY CORRECTED THE MISTAKE, AND ADMIT IT WAS A MISTAKE, DID OBAMA IMMEDIATELY SAY HE MADE A MISTAKE WITH WRIGHT OR DID HE EVEN SAY HE MADE A MISTAKE ATTENDING FOR 20 YEARS A BLACK PANTHER CHURCH.
Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 09:22 AM : Mar 20, 2008

It funny how John McCain''s mistakes in the political world automatically call into question Obama''s practices (and perceived mistakes) in his private life. I suspect that Hillary Clinton''s campaign is behind this.

[finewoven]

"On this grim milestone, it is worth remembering how we got into this situation, and thinking about how best we can get out," said Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.

I don''t know if John Dingell really knows how we got into this situation. When God spoke to President Bush, and told him to invade Iraq--and Congress sided with Bush''s appraisal of the situation, then we started the bombing. God didn''t speak to Mr. Dingell, so what could he possibly know?

Does anyone know, does God speak to Mr. McCain, and can we expect the same imperative from him if he were chosen as President?

[j-whitman]

Nobel Necessary & Romantic ???

George, cleaning ****** off a blue dress is nobel, necessary & romantic ----- Your Iraq War is a war of agression, you''ve turned our country into what we used to fight

[honestabe8]

Georgie: If the war is so F-ing noble, send your daughters.

[quetzal0666]

by Hillarygrl34 ...

MY POINT IS IM NOT PRO OR ANTI CASTRO,
but the point im making is Why this guy is not handed over to Authorities in Latin America?
Will he Embarass Papa bush for the things he commited
while papa was Cia Director and this guy was blowing up planes while under his employ???

[iceman_1960]

Hillarygrl34,

That"s three times in a row you have agreed with me.

I hope this becomes a habit.

[iceman_1960]

"ABSOLUTELY AGREE, MY DOCTOR IS A MUSLIM AND HE IS GREAT FRIEND, I DONT NECESSARLY BELEIVE IN EVERYTHING HE BELIEVES IN, BUT I KNOW ILL KEEP MY HEAD WHEN I AM AROUND HIM... We just making the terrorist extremely happy when they come to bloggs like this hating bush , impeach bush, freaking nonsense."
- Posted by Hillarygrl34 at 09:53 AM : Mar 20, 2008
-----------------------

Well I certainly hope he isn"t your proctologist.

Americans should say what"s on their minds on blogs like this, no matter what the terrorists think about it.

[iceman_1960]

America has neither the resources nor the men to police every street in the 1-billion-plus Muslim world.

That is a fact for which no Wikipedia article needs to be cited.

There had better be a more reasonable answer to getting along in the world, then some half-a*ssed gunboat diplomacy policy.