Bush stuns troops in Iraq visit

Washington Times ^ | 11/28/03 | Joseph Curl

[kattracks]

President Bush yesterday swooped into Baghdad for a surprise Thanksgiving Day visit with U.S. troops and, with a tear running down his cheek, said their countrymen "pray for your safety and your strength as you continue to defend America."

The hundreds of stunned soldiers, standing on chairs and tables, cheered wildly at the president's surprise arrival.

[Smokin' Joe]

Let the spin doctors say what they want. This was OUTSTANDING in every regard.

[ILBBACH]

...Pfc. Mark Hansen, 29, of Hillsborough, N.J., an Army field artillery surveyor: "I'm proud to have him as the commander in chief. You can't beat it."

When Clinton was in office, I was one of those - "I support the troops, but not the Commander-in-Chief." But THEY hated him too!

I think it's true now, that if you support the troops, you MUST support the Commander-in-Chief. They trust him, believe in him, and they love him. The two are not mutually exclusive!

[Luke Skyfreeper]

Personally, I'm STILL stunned. And still laughing, too!

[DB]

Yes it was outstanding.

The more the Dems complain the more it will backfire in their faces.

[Callahan]

I'm still enjoying the picture in my mind of Dem strategists choking on their vegetarian Thanksgiving dinners when they heard this news.

[ambrose]

The speech was great. He's really good when he's speaking off of notes or off the cuff, but usually looks bad off a teleprompter.

[nutmeg]

ping!

Please FReepmail me if you want on or off my infrequent ‘miscellaneous’ ping list.

[jennyp]

The speech was great. He's really good when he's speaking off of notes or off the cuff, but usually looks bad off a teleprompter.

Hey you're right, he wasn't using a teleprompter! Yes, he's a really good speaker when he gets to wing it a little. And this speech was obviously from the heart.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

President Bush and U.S. Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (left) react during the president's secret visit to Iraq. AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, Pool

[BigSkyFreeper]

The whole speech was classic Bush for me, but two lines stood out for me the most, one unscripted, and one from his speech: Unscripted remark:
"I was just looking for a warm meal somewhere."

From the speech:
"We did not charge hundreds of miles into the heart of Iraq, pay a bitter cost in casualties, defeat a brutal dictator and liberate 25 million people only to retreat before a band of thugs and assassins."

The second one is a rebuttal to every single Democrats charge that we should "cut our losses and run". At least that was my take on it. I had planned on watching football on Thanksgiving, but the news of Bush paying a visit to Baghdad was a very, very, nice surprise, and it didn't bother me that I missed the football games.

[Central Scrutiniser]

Cool, just found out about it on Drudge, its 6 pm here (Bangkok), so the news should be filtering out..

[FixitGuy]

This is one of those "hit it out of the park" deals.

No matter what anyone thinks about George, this took real guts!

Some will spin it as foolishly dangerous, but I disagree in advance!

[FixitGuy]

BTW, slightly missed opportunity though, coulda said:

...."and to our new friends here in Iraq, we are committed to your defense and your growth as a free nation! We hope to see you as a democratic free people who can be free to worship as you please when you please. We have proven that freedom of religion works for us and it will work for YOU!

Help us to secure that freedom for you and help us to root out those among you whose lives are simply filled with hate for this idea.

The world will be a better place with Iraq as a free, peaceful and productive nation."

(Sorry, couldn't help myself.)

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Iraqi Governing Counsel member Ahmad Chalabi (C) smiles while U.S. military troops applaud U. S. President George W. Bush who surprised U.S. military troops stationed in Iraq with a secret Thanksgiving Day visit to personally honor their service and sacrifice at the Baghdad International Airport, November 27, 2003. The president arrived in Iraq unannounced and met with troops before returning to his Central Texas ranch for the weekend. REUTERS/Larry Downing

[Bigg Red]

Yes, this was a magnificent gesture.
God bless our president! God bless our troops!

Thanks for the flag, friend.

[Nitro]

I served in the US Navy under President Reagan...

the only thing I can think of that would be better...

is if I could serve under President George W. Bush!

[McGavin999]

OMG, that's the best picture I've ever seen. Look at the faces of those young men. LOL, President Bush always says he loves surprises and now I know why!

[Clara Lou]

Oh, wow!!! I haven't seen that particular photo. It's a keeper. GW made a great Thanksgiving even better. He makes me proud enough to pop. And I'm thrilled for the troops.

[kayak]

Omigosh, does this picture speak volumes about what this trip meant to our military!

Jim Angle from FOX News said that even some time after the President's appearance, Gen. Sanchez still teared up when talking about it.