Posted on 11/11/2006 8:29:30 AM PST by shrinkermd
Signaling an openness to a broad shift on his Iraq policy, President George W. Bush on Saturday described his new pick for defense secretary, Robert Gates, as an able manager and "agent of change."
This week's surprise announcement of the ouster of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld -- a lightning rod for criticism of the administration's handling of the Iraq war -- followed a crushing defeat for Bush's Republicans in Tuesday's midterm elections.
In Gates, Bush chose a former CIA director and pragmatist expected to be more inclined to consensus-building than the combative Rumsfeld.
"He has experience leading large and complex organizations, and he has shown that he is an agent of change," Bush said in his weekly radio address. "As secretary of defense, he will provide a fresh outlook on our strategy in Iraq, and what we need to do to prevail."
Bush has acknowledged that voter frustration over Iraq helped fuel wins for Democrats that swept them to power in both houses of Congress for the first time in 12 years.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
I don't think there will be any change in policy; stay the course will be adapted to something like adapt to win (like Ken Melman was saying during the campaign). Gates will understand that cutting and running is a win for AQ and we will not do that. The President looks so down now and the media has done everything in its power to destroy this man. He needs to bounce back and hope he does soon. The media should be scorned and shunned for what they are doing.
MrNatural: But that's not it; it's because his ability to run DOD is over. Beginning in January, he would have been spending 5 days a week on Capitol Hill being raked over the coals by various Senate and House committees.
MrNatural's analysis is "spot on." However, umgud is also correct. The "appearance" is as he stated. Given the lack of intelligence demonstrated by the voters, appearances may be all that matters.
I couldn't agree more.
The truth is that Gates would not have gotten this job if he didn't mostly agree with what we are doing.
Unforunately even some FReepers are doing a lot of the whipping up on the President these days but the man has more than earned my support over these last 6 years and I don't see it flagging anytime soon.
Right as rain. umgud's thoughts were/are correct. I should have said something about that in my original remarks; that I was just adding on to what he had said.
The sad thing is that so many on this site seem to be buying the "appearance" scenario, that somehow GW is 'caving to the dems'.
They are all agents of change. If the country didn't want change they would not hire these agents. All the way from elected officials to appointed officials to hired staff to self-elected non-profit corps and NGOs, they are all agents of change. If we didn't have official agents of change, Nature would do it the natural way, and mostly does anyway unless foreign powers get there first.
IT’S SINATRA TIME
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler
Wednesday, 08 November 2006
Yes, it's Sinatra Time - meaning, recall FS's lyrics in That's Life, take a while to feel like garbage over Americans electing people who hate their country to run Capitol Hill, then pick yourself up and get back in the race.
Yes, this is not going to be easy. I lived through the old joke this morning - waking up at dawn to survey the wreckage of yesterday, telling myself to cheer up as things could be worse. So I cheered up and sure enough, things got disastrously worse when Bush threw Rummy to the wolves of the left - and announced the worst possible replacement.
Bobby Gates' nickname at the CIA was The Little Prick. He is a pompous, incompetent, squishy witless fool. He is the total tool of the Jimmy Baker-Brent Scowcroft crowd that so horribly ran foreign affairs for GW's daddy. To put such a man in charge of the Pentagon - the one bastion of pro-Americanism remaining in our foreign policy establishment - is an unmitigated catastrophe.
Conservatives can get back in the race by blocking this awful nomination. They did it with Harriet Miers, it can be done with Little Bobby.
I fear that Bush's new tone and any bones he throws the dems won't be reciprocated.
Thanks for providing the link.
I needed that (slapping face.....).
Leni
Satire, but so true.
It's good to have all of this alarm over Gates so we can keep Rummy in for as long as possible. He was going anyway, better now HIS way.
The DUmmies hate everything about ANYONE who is even considered for this Administration so I expect that with their help, and their excessive bloviating during any opportunity they have to be on TV, we may be able to tie up this nomination for months longer than is necessary. That's very good for us as it keeps Rumsfeld around.
I admire the move.
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