Baghdadis hail Bush surprise visit

AFP ^ | 28nov03 | AFP

[submarinerswife]

Media won't report any neg. anything from the troops either.

[Moonman62]

"He's a coward, he came here at night like a thief, he's afraid of the resistance," protested another man, refusing to identify himself.

He refused to ID himself because he's Saddam Fedayeen, or AQ.

The AFP rolodex is filled with such unnamed sources. They probably don't even visit them for the quotes, which are probably already on file.

[nicmarlo]

The DNC seems to have set up shop in Baghdad.

Not so; as a whole, those of the DNC represent the perfect example of what minimal standards of human decency produce: they are of the most basest, despicable, sordid, vile, wretched, and self-serving human beings upon whom I've ever cast my eyes or suffered my ears to hear; motherland matters not.

I dare say, many of the left in America would fit right in with the most ruthless of the Taliban and the terrorists.

[Darksheare]

I'd forgotten about their rolodex of coconspirators.

[lawdude]

"Any bets that the media's reporting of Hitlery's trip to Afghanistan won't include negative comments from the local Afghanis?????"

One high ranking Afghani official was quoted as saying, "Who the f*** is Hillary Clinton?"

[Cuttnhorse]

After a long silence, Air Force One answered that they were not...the plane was a Gulfstream (?).

Interesting...flew in in a Gulfstream...I wondered if he went on Air Force 1.
This tells me this trip was planned for quite awhile...lots of transfers and midnight stuff.

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

I'd like to see if Saddam got the cojones to show up for 2 hours in Washington, DC!

[VOA]

Maybe I'm the last person to hear the PUNCHLINE to this event:

Senators Clinton and Reid are scheduled to fly into Baghdad TOMORROW

at least that's what I heard ABC Radio News reporter Tom Gauger (sp?) say on
KABC radio here in Los Angeles.

Looks like Dubya got there "the firstest with the mostest"!

[Tunehead54]

He "should bring back security to the country, there is no security here", she complained.

---

Every time I read about some Iraqi moaning about security I want to puke. What do they think our guys are doing out there? We're losing a soldier a day - MINIMUM - for their f-ing security.

Least their daughters aren't being dragged off to Soddamn's palaces for a "treat".

If security is so important why don't the mullahs call on the populace to turn in the insurgents. Do we have a "800-Kill-Them" link that the populace is aware of? If not - we need one.

[gcruse]

Major Pipeline in Iraq Ablaze "Sabotage of pipelines and other infrastructure has become a major problem for the U.S.-run coalition and its Iraqi partners as they try to revive the country's giant petroleum industry."

You know, the French Resistance resisted the Nazi occupation less than Iraqis resist American liberation. Are Arabs obtuse authoritarians by nature, or backward yurt dwellers by choice?

[Kirkwood]

CNN was reporting that 50 US troops were complaining about the Bush visit. That they weren't allowed to leave the airport to return to their barracks and it was putting them at risk to travel later at night after the president left. I have no idea if this report was true, but I find it a bit hard to believe.

[William McKinley]

Sounds like Carville to me.

[trick question]

I've had CNN on for several hours now, and I didn't hear anything like what you just said.

[faithincowboys]

This reporter for AFP is a total Leftist hack. What a pessimistic report, esp the last couple of paragraphs. This is like Jayson Blair reporting, I'll just disregard some of the quotes from Iraqis. Leftist reporters put their bs into the mouths of mythic people.

[Rome2000]

He refused to ID himself because he's Saddam Fedayeen, or AQ.

Hope they're looking for him.

Nah, he's probably DNC.

[Darksheare]

It was Dean!

[LS]

"He's a coward, he came here at night like a thief, he's afraid of the resistance," protested another man, refusing to identify himself."

No, little Iraqi turd, it showed everyone (including all your terror buddies) just the opposite. The most visible man in the world could walk right into your midst, make a speech, meet the governing council and leave before you goat-ropers had a clue what was going on. This sends a powerful message to the "resistance" that they are weaker than they thought.

[Salgak]

You are correct, ANY USAF plane carrying the President is Air Force One. Likewise, the Marine Helicopters carrying the President are Marine One. Any, I would assume similar for any Army or Navy flight carrying the President.

As for the Big Blue Bird, there are two of them. Tail Numbers 28000 and 29000. Details here at the White House. And more details at Boeing's AF1 site

[Capt. Tom]

What a pessimistic report, esp the last couple of paragraphs.

Here is more objective upbeat report from our friends at Reuters. -Tom

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) - Some Iraqis were happy President Bush came to their country Thursday, others wished he had gone to hell instead.

"As far as I'm concerned he's welcome to come and he's more than welcome to leave," said Abu Mohammed, 57, a cigarette and chewing gum vendor on the streets of the capital.

Bush secretly left his Texas ranch and traveled to Baghdad Thursday and spent 2-1/2 hours in the Iraqi capital with U.S. troops, giving them a big morale booster on Thanksgiving Day .

Abu Sara, a restaurant owner in the capital, said if security and living standards under the Americans did not improve rapidly, more Iraqis would turn against the U.S. forces.

"We welcome Bush as we welcome any guest who comes peacefully," he said. "But we want to draw attention to the fact that there is no security, no jobs and no services well into the American occupation of Iraq.

"If the situation continues, Iraqis will use everything they have to throw the Americans out, including stones."

In the nearly eight months since U.S. forces overthrew Saddam, U.S.-led authorities have struggled to restore security and provide simple services to ordinary Iraqis who have grown frustrated by the occupation.

More than 180 U.S. soldiers have died in action in Iraq since Bush declared major combat over in the country on May 1 and in recent weeks an insurgency led by loyalists to the former regime appears to have deepened and gained coordination.

To try to quell guerrillas, U.S. forces have stepped up operations, dropping bombs on suspected rebel positions, firing mortars and missiles and raiding homes with heavy fire.

The aggressive tactics have angered many ordinary Iraqis and led some to compare Bush to imperial invaders of old.

"To hell with Bush. He is another Mongol in a line of invaders who have destroyed Iraq," said Mohammed al-Jubouri.

Iraqis waiting for hours to fill up with gasoline in the center of Baghdad said Bush was not liked at all.

"Look at what we have to go through. Our living conditions have become deplorable. The U.S. situation in Iraq will only become worse if things do not improve," said one taxi driver.

"Bush has zero popularity here"

[stuck_in_new_orleans]

He's a coward, he came here at night like a thief, he's afraid of the resistance," protested another man, refusing to identify himself

Hmmm, why didnt the american reporter wish to be identified?