Posted on 12/18/2005 4:48:35 PM PST by Wolfstar
PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY As is their custom when in Washington on a weekend, the President and First Lady attended St. Johns Episcopal Church this morning. The President will address the nation this evening from the Oval Office. In the meantime, Vice President Dick Cheney made a surprise visit to Iraq on the first leg of his Middle Eastern trip.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: From the Vice President's remarks to the troops at Al-Asad Air Base, Al-Asad, Iraq, Sunday, December 18, 2005. (Click here to read the entire transcript.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, I'm not Jessica Simpson. (Laughter.) But I'm glad to be here, and I thank you for that warm welcome; General Johnson, for the kind words. And I want to say good afternoon to all my fellow Americans. I happened to be in the neighborhood, so I thought I'd drop by.It's a privilege to be here, to stand on the ground of the world's newest democracy -- to be with so many men and women who helped make this history. I wanted to pay this visit during the holidays to express appreciation to all of you and to every American serving in this part of the world. With Christmas and Hanukkah arriving next week, I know your thoughts naturally turn to home. And your fellow Americans are thinking of you more than ever. I'm pleased to bring you the good wishes of the entire country, and personal greetings from our Commander-in-Chief, President George W. Bush. (Applause.)
From Marines going into combat and dominating the battle space, to the precision strikes of the Air Force, to the Army brigades holding and operating across wide terrain, to Navy corpsmen risking their lives to help the wounded, and to Seabees all over the country, day and night, preparing runways, fixing water pumps, and doing a hundred other tasks, Americans serving in Iraq have been absolutely superb.
They've made clear, as well, their ultimate ambition: to acquire weapons of mass destruction, to destroy Israel, to intimidate all Western countries, to cause mass death in the United States. The terrorists' war against America began long before 9/11. And during those years, they were the ones on the offensive. They grew bolder in their belief that if they killed Americans, they could change American policy. In Beiruit in 1983, terrorists killed 241 of our servicemen. Thereafter, the U.S. withdrew from Beiruit. In Mogadishu in 1993, terrorists killed 19 Americans; thereafter, the U.S. withdrew from Somalia. Over time the terrorists concluded that they could strike America without paying a price because they did -- repeatedly: the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York in 1993; the murders at the Saudi National Guard training facility in Riyadh in 1995; the attack on Khobar Towers in 1996; the attack on our embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998; the attack on the USS Cole in 2000.
Ultimately, of course, they attacked the homeland on 9/11 and took the lives of 3,000 people aboard passenger jets, and at the World Trade Center, and at the Pentagon.
Now terrorists are making a stand here in Iraq, trying to force the United States to abandon our friends, and permit the overthrow of this new Middle Eastern democracy. Zarqawi has sworn his allegiance to bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda. And recently we got our hands on a message from bin Laden's deputy, Zawahiri, sent to Zarqawi. The letter makes clear that Iraq is part of a larger plan of imposing Islamic radicalism across the broader Middle East, making Iraq a terrorist haven and a staging ground for attacks against other nations. Zawahiri also expresses the view that America can made to run again. But we're giving him an education. We're in this fight to win. These colors don't run.
This is the first photo I can recall seeing of the theater in the White House. All I can say is, it sure is red. Red was a popular color in Victorian homes for walls, furniture and drapes. Maybe the theater motif is intended to be Victorian.
ALL CLEAR!
Hi, ilovew.
Good evening, Peach. I think the President's speech will not be as dramatic as his radio address yesterday, but will be designed to update the American people on progress. GWB is going over the media's collective pointing head.
Grin...no crazies allowed here.
Anyone have audio of Cheney's speech today?
Hi Theresa. You're welcome. I have no doubt the bashers are out in force on other live threads.
Re the Cowboys, sigh.
Good evening Wolfstar - thanks for the dose
Hiya! How are you doing?
You have done it !!!!!
Yes, me too. Next to the President himself, the VP's visit is most important. GWB has said he'd like to go again, but he has to consider the diplomatic implications for the new government. They can't be seen to be his "puppets."
Who says bald men aren't sexy?
GREAT photos of our president and vice president!
Kudos to VP Cheney for making a surprise trip to Iraq -- what an AWESOME morale boost for our troops and our Iraqi allies!
Prayers up for the President this evening! [BTW: Unlike some at FR, I'm quite sure the President will keep this speech upbeat and focused on Iraq!!]
NOTE: I've got a lot of presents to wrap while the kiddies are at a movie (Narnia) . . . I'll check back after the speech!
Sorry to hear about the difficulties you've been having lately. I have no personal experience with such surgery. However, I do know that scar tissue that forms after surgery can sometimes cause soreness and outright pain for a long time after the area has healed. Cold, damp weather can contribute to the pain.
Check the White House web page I posted the link to in post #24. Perhaps the WH has put up an audio link.
Good evening, snugs. You're most welcome. These were the only photos I found of the VP's visit on Yahoo. Perhaps more could be found with some creating searching, but I was a little later than planned getting the Dose up tonight.
How come he looks so much better than everybody else his age?
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