Bush God comments 'not literal'

BBC News | oct. 7, 2005 | BBC News

[blogblogginaway]

A Palestinian official who said the US president had claimed God told him to invade Iraq and Afghanistan says he did not take George Bush's words literally.

Nabil Shaath said he and other world leaders at a Jordan summit two years ago did not believe Mr Bush thought God had given him a personal message.

Mr Bush's spokesman said the original allegation, which will appear in a BBC documentary next week, was absurd.

Scott McClellan said the comments had never been made.

The comments were attributed to Mr Bush by Mr Shaath, a Palestinian negotiator, in the upcoming TV series Elusive Peace: Israel and the Arabs.

Mr Shaath said that in a 2003 meeting with Mr Bush, the US president said he was "driven with a mission from God".

"God would tell me, George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan. And I did, and then God would tell me, George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq... And I did.

"And now, again, I feel God's words coming to me, Go get the Palestinians their state and get the Israelis their security, and get peace in the Middle East. And by God I'm gonna do it."

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who attended the meeting in June 2003 too, also appears on the documentary series to recount how Mr Bush told him: "I have a moral and religious obligation. So I will get you a Palestinian state."

'Strong faith'

But in an interview for the BBC Arabic service on Friday, he said the president - who had just announced an end to hostilities in Iraq, was merely expressing his heartfelt commitment to peace in the Middle East.

"President Bush said that God guided him in what he should do, and this guidance led him to go to Afghanistan to rid it of terrorism after 9/11 and led him to Iraq to fight tyranny," he said.

"We understood that he was illustrating [in his comments] his strong faith and his belief that this is what God wanted."

The TV series charts recent attempts to bring peace to the Middle East, from former US President Bill Clinton's peace talks in 1999-2000 to Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip this year.

It seeks to uncover what happened behind closed doors by speaking to presidents and prime ministers, along with their generals and ministers.

The BBC Two series, Israel and the Arabs: Elusive Peace will be broadcast on Mondays from 10 October at 2100 BST.

[blogblogginaway]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4320586.stm

[the invisib1e hand]

great fodder for late-night comedy!

[chaos_5]

I think the only reason this story got published was to try and discredit the President by portraying him as a fool who dose what "God" tells him to.

[injin]

personally , I very much hope God does talk to Mr.President.
and I hope he listens to God , loud and clear .

I hope that the 'talk' is at times a dialog, and that Mr. President petitions for help with the situation with the pesky muslims on this old world.... I would very much like to see God make it abundantly clear that they (the muslims) do not hold any monopoly on Holiness....

[anonymoussierra]

thank you"blogblogginaway"

---

“This man is of honor and dignity of fore BBC has overstepped again; eto news is news. I want to write something here. What country stood against terrorist first? What country send it soldiers to foreign lands to fight first? Of fore what a hypocrisy is in this world; eto credit has to be giving where of eto is do to of United States of America. I say time has come great people of your great nation to stop helping, let dice fall where it should. You need to spend on your own country, why everyone accepts that your nation have to give milliards of dollars for anything, this is absurd!!!! I say no enough of this stop helping, they use you time to say enough of it. You need to stand up for yourself once and of all. Other countries Arabia Saudyjska Russia itp… make money and they keep it, and fore you are not a bank let them start spend their money; eto should you? Says Who? Stand up for yourselves for once. Of eto richness is around you use it wisely for your good great nation” On a shining Hill””
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[bpjam]

the BBC is just mocking W and all other conservative christians. They think that the 'bible thumpers' actually 'speak' to God and that God actually 'speaks' back to them. As if God uses Trillian and in IM'ing the faithful to give them direction.

The BBC represents a country where only 22% believe in God (their poll). They look down on America because we are over 90% believers here and they think its some sort of mental illness. This article is as close as you will find to a complete retraction from the BBC.

[anonymoussierra]

AMEN!!!!!thank you"bpjam"

[Black Tooth]

think the only reason this story got published was to try and discredit the President by portraying him as a fool who dose what "God" tells him to.

Ah.....Never mind.

[ShadowDancer]

Yeah, like if God told me to go open a beer and drink it I would do it.

Ooooops, nevermind.

[GOP_1900AD]

Caught trying to smear W with lies, now the backpeddling begins at the beeb ...

[dr_lew]

There she is,
Watching t.v.
All my children.
No, thats cosby.
No, speed racer.
No, thats shaft.
No, thats kimble.
My fault...the t.v.’s off.