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Bush: Bloodshed in Iraq Is 'Worth It'JENNIFER LOVEN
AP
President Bush on Tuesday appealed for the nation's patience for "difficult and dangerous" work ahead in Iraq, hoping a backdrop of U.S. troops and a reminder of Iraq's revived sovereignty would help him reclaim control of an issue that has eroded his popularity.
In an evening address at an Army base that has 9,300 troops in Iraq, Bush was acknowledging the toll of the 27-month-old war. At the same time, he aimed to persuade skeptical Americans that his strategy for victory needed only time — not any changes — to be successful.
"Like most Americans, I see the images of violence and bloodshed. Every picture is horrifying and the suffering is real," Bush said, according to excerpts released ahead of time by the White House. "It is worth it."
It was a tricky balancing act, believed necessary by White House advisers who have seen persistent insurgent attacks eat into Americans' support for the war — and for the president — and increase discomfort among even Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Bush marked the first anniversary of the transfer of power from the U.S.-led coalition to Iraq's interim government by focusing on progress in the past year and promising success against the still-potent insurgency.
"The terrorists can kill the innocent, but they cannot stop the advance of freedom," he said in a speech that was to be attended by 750 soldiers and airmen. "They will fail."
He was rejecting calls to set a timetable for withdrawing 135,000 American troops. Instead, he argued for maintaining the present two-pronged strategy: equipping Iraqi security forces to take over the anti-insurgency fight and helping Iraqi political leaders in the transition to a permanent democratic government.
"The work in Iraq is difficult and dangerous," the president said. "We have more work to do and there will be tough moments that test America's resolve."
Bush's repeated acknowledgment of death and difficulty came less than a month after Vice President Dick Cheney proclaimed the Iraq insurgency "in the last throes." Still, the president's overriding message was one of optimism.
"The American people do not falter under threat, and we will not allow our future to be determined by car bombers and assassins," he said.
Democrats and other critics said the country needed more specifics than Bush has been giving.
"We just don't have a clue what the criteria for success is," said Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., a Vietnam combat veteran. "People are still willing to give the president time if he would just level with them."
Outside the base, opponents of the war planned protests.
The liberal group MoveOn.org also unveiled television advertisements that call the Iraq war "a quagmire." "We got in the wrong way. Let's get out the right way," say the ads running in several contested congressional districts.
Bush reserved a few hours before the speech for a private session to console the loved ones of fallen soldiers. Though he often holds these meetings when visiting military bases, the White House's decision to schedule time with 33 grieving families on the same day as the major address underscored the president's plan to offer a more somber assessment than usual of a war that has killed over 1,740 U.S. military personnel and 12,000 Iraqi civilians.
The Iraqis face the next milestone in their rocky transition to democracy on Aug. 15, the deadline to produce a draft of a new constitution.
Earlier Tuesday, a suicide car bomb attack was a reminder of the difficulties. An influential Shiite member of parliament, his son and two bodyguards were killed.
A recent Associated Press/Ipsos poll found a majority of Americans now think the war was a mistake.
Public patience is even being tested here in military-friendly North Carolina, where signs along the streets of nearby Fayetteville show steadfast support of the armed forces. In the past year, 100 troops from the several North Carolina bases have died in the war, trailing only the toll from California, according to an Associated Press analysis. A new statewide poll released Tuesday showed that, for the first time, more North Carolinians think the war is not worthwhile than think it is.
"We told them if they established a government we would back off," said 26-year-old Carrie Dimmick. "They established a government, but we're still there. I feel like the war is doing more harm than good."
Present.. thanks for ping. The rain we desperately needed came this afternoon along with lotsa electrical activity. Of all nights to maybe lose power.
