Bush speech feared as more war talk

New York Daily News ^ | 1/22/05 | KENNETH R. BAZINET

[kattracks]

WASHINGTON - European and Mideast officials feared yesterday that President Bush's inaugural address left open a possibility of more costly American military action.

Some foreign officials charged that Bush's "liberty" speech went overboard on thinly veiled threats to use force to promote freedom abroad.

"The neo-cons have lost in Iraq, but have won in Washington," said one European diplomat, referring to the hawkish Bush advisers who have pressed for war with Iraq, Syria and Iran, among other nations.

Bush-bashing Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko accused the President of promoting a pro-democracy agenda that is really a disguise for "pouring blood and smells of oil."

Lukashenko, who has been accused of human-rights abuses and running a Soviet-style dictatorship, mocked the religious overtones in Bush's speech, saying, "The United States says that it has orders from above to introduce freedoms in every country."

Even a senior member of the Republican foreign-policy establishment took a dim view of Bush's initiative, calling it idealistic but unworkable.

"Okay, we're going to commit ourselves to democratizing Africa," he said. "Are we going to focus on [U.S. ally] Egypt or Zimbabwe? Neither one is a democratic state. This just takes your breath away - and there wasn't a word of how the concept would actually work."

Foreign-affairs experts also questioned the language Bush used in his speech and argued that the international community would have preferred to hear dovish rhetoric, too, like trumpeting the success of the U.S. military's relief efforts in areas wiped out by the tsunamis.

California state political science Prof. As'ad Abukhalil called it "astonishing" that "Bush's rhetoric was shrouded in the religious language of televangelists."

"That will not go well in the Middle East and Muslim regions," added Abukhalil, author of the book "The Battle for Saudi Arabia: Royalty, Fundamentalism, and Global Power."

With Thomas M. DeFrank

[dAnconia]

"- European and Mideast officials feared yesterday..."

Great speech Mr. President!

[roses of sharon]

We tried it your way for 30 years and got 9/11, Islamic cults roaming the globe murdering innocents with impunity, a corrupt UN, Saddam and sons "contained" with billions for WMD, while funding cults, and killing his people, and Arafat with a "peace" prize.

Move over, and give a new policy 30 years.

[KiloLima]

The President's speech was even more wonderful than I thought, if it got this reaction. He didn't give the slightest nod to political correctness, but stood strong for America and expressed his generous, heartfelt Christian principles. I'm glad the anti-American crowd didn't like it.