perfidy

I watched Bush's big address last night (shame on the major networks for not clearing the time!), and I gotta say... the ending kicked ass. Once the senior speechwriter took over, and you could pinpoint the exact second he or she did, the prose took flight, Bush settled into a comfortable speechifying groove, and for once he sounded like a President rather than a two-bit trust-funder presiding over a Masonic lodge. The speech ended with this call to action and resoundingly clear statement of purpose.

We did not seek this war on terror, but this is the world as we find it. We must keep our focus. We must do our duty. History is moving, and it will tend toward hope, or tend toward tragedy. Our terrorist enemies have a vision that guides and explains all their varied acts of murder. They seek to impose Taliban-like rule, country by country, across the greater Middle East. They seek the total control of every person, and mind, and soul, a harsh society in which women are voiceless and brutalized. They seek bases of operation to train more killers and export more violence. They commit dramatic acts of murder to shock, frighten and demoralize civilized nations, hoping we will retreat from the world and give them free rein. They seek weapons of mass destruction, to impose their will through blackmail and catastrophic attacks. None of this is the expression of a religion. It is a totalitarian political ideology, pursued with consuming zeal, and without conscience.

Our actions, too, are guided by a vision. We believe that freedom can advance and change lives in the greater Middle East, as it has advanced and changed lives in Asia, and Latin America, and Eastern Europe, and Africa. We believe it is a tragedy of history that in the Middle East -- which gave the world great gifts of law and science and faith -- so many have been held back by lawless tyranny and fanaticism. We believe that when all Middle Eastern peoples are finally allowed to live and think and work and worship as free men and women, they will reclaim the greatness of their own heritage. And when that day comes, the bitterness and burning hatreds that feed terrorism will fade and die away. America and all the world will be safer when hope has returned to the Middle East.

These two visions -- one of tyranny and murder, the other of liberty and life -- clashed in Afghanistan. And thanks to brave U.S. and coalition forces and to Afghan patriots, the nightmare of the Taliban is over, and that nation is coming to life again. These two visions have now met in Iraq, and are contending for the future of that country. The failure of freedom would only mark the beginning of peril and violence. But, my fellow Americans, we will not fail. We will persevere, and defeat this enemy, and hold this hard-won ground for the realm of liberty.

That's one for the ages. Great stuff, though chock-full of imperialist/progressive-history assumptions sure to enrage Chomskyites and nonpluss left-leaners (me included, sort of). But what about the other 90% of the speech? Much less good, as if Bush could only let out the President to play for five minutes at a time. The rest of the address was in the usual fumble-prosed and murky style we usually encounter from him. Murdoc says that critics will say "It's the same thing he's been saying all along!" and argues that that's the point. I disagree. A year and a half has gone by, and Bush has quietly changed tack 180 degrees on some crucial issues. Two examples:

At my direction, and with the support of Iraqi authorities, we are accelerating our program to help train Iraqis to defend their country. A new team of senior military officers is now assessing every unit in Iraq's security forces. I've asked this team to oversee the training of a force of 260,000 Iraqi soldiers, police, and other security personnel. Five Iraqi army battalions are in the field now, with another eight battalions to join them by July the 1st. The eventual goal is an Iraqi army of 35,000 soldiers in 27 battalions, fully prepared to defend their country.

So much for de-Ba'athification. A little later, Bush made a comment that elicited howls of derision from the folks I was with, Republican and Democrat alike: "General Abizaid and other commanders in Iraq are constantly assessing the level of troops they need to fulfill the mission. If they need more troops, I will send them." Presented without comment like that, one gets the impression that the invitation's been open all along.

Elsewhere, Bush marred what was in general a strong speech by flatly contradicting himself.

On June 30th, the Coalition Provisional Authority will cease to exist, and will not be replaced. The occupation will end....

Do note the use of the word "occupation," the first time I can remember that Bush has called a plow a plow since the libervasion began. Kudos there. But the larger point is that the occupation is slated to end on June 30. Yet, a little later the President says, "given the recent increase in violence, we'll maintain our troop level at the current 138,000 as long as necessary." To me, that seems a bit contradictory. Either the occupation will end on June 30, or US troops will stay in Iraq at full strength. That dissonance is only magified by statements like this one: "After June 30th, American and other forces will still have important duties. American military forces in Iraq will operate under American command as a part of a multinational force authorized by the United Nations." Aside from the faintly ridiculous presumption that the UN's endorsement of whatever plan the US brings to it is a fait accompli, one is left to wonder which of the three plans is the real one, or in what measure each is true.

Furthermore, even though Bush came thisclose to admitting mistakes have been made, ("We've learned from these failures, and we've taken steps to correct them"), it turns out the failures in question are Iraqi:

Iraq's military, police, and border forces have begun to take on broader responsibilities. Eventually, they must be the primary defenders of Iraqi security, as American and coalition forces are withdrawn. And we're helping them to prepare for this role. In some cases, the early performance of Iraqi forces fell short. Some refused orders to engage the enemy.

Beyond being fatuous and cack-handed, yet again the President resists the urge to admit fallibility.

But, after a point I am nitpicking. Last night Bush did something he should have done long ago: reached out to the American people with a progress report and a plan for the future. Despite what I regard as grave missteps as cataloged above, and a cringe-inducing moment when he squinted at the TelePromTer as he stumbled over the pronunciation of "Abu Ghraib" (giving the unfortunate impression he'd never heard the words before), Bush sounded more Presidental, and more like a leader, than he has since September 2001.

It's not enough to make me vote for him, but at least it seems that after three years in office, he's learning a thing or two. Go read it yourself and see what you think.