Strain of Iraq war showing on Bush, those who know him say

USA TODAY ^ | April 2, 2003 | Judy Keen

[Timesink]

WASHINGTON

[RichardW]

What a load of bilge.

[exDemMom]

A really frightening thought: we could have had Gore.

Thank God for President Bush!

[cynicom]

Why do they not do an interview with Saddam, see how he is standing the stress.

[KeyWest]

Since you are the only one who has posted so far that thinks it is good throughtout, and disagree with all who says it has flaws, I would be wasting my time.

[EternalVigilance]

Well, so far, Miss Marple's been the only one who didn't like it who explained why. The rest have just made their remarks and wandered off.

FR is supposed to be a place for people to express what they think. Tell me explicitly why you don't like it. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

[fightu4it]

I wouldn't give a damn for a man who could send troops into combat and not worry about the safety of those troops.

Likewise, I wouldn't give a damn for a man who lacked the courage to send in the troops when it was necessary.

[GilesB]

I agree with Miss Marple. Particularly about the first part of the piece. In the first couple of paragraphs there are several negative comments - his stubborness, his sarcasm, his fretting - and almost all of what can be read as negative is unsourced and unquoted; the author's spin or interpretation of what all those staffers and friends actually said.

Anytime a writer makes a direct statement (his sarcastic remarks to staffers, for instance) without specifically quoting, specifically sourcing the statement, or giving specific examples, the writer is guilty of shoddy work. If I remember correctly, in an article chock full of various assertions, only two sources are quoted - and none of the direct quotes can legitimately be viewed as negative commentary. All of what I see as negative is vaguely attributed to "many staffers" or "friends" - lazy, sloppy journalism....but it helps paint the picture USA Today is trying to build.

Watch for subsequent articles that continue to build on the hints and markers laid in this seemingly benign piece.

[EternalVigilance]

Well, I guess I'm in a distinct minority of one here. So be it. But after seeing the mountains of explicit bilge being pumped out against the President from the Left, this one seems pretty benign to me.

I still don't think anyone will be losing any sleep over this piece at the White House.

[GilesB]

Certainly it is not nearly as bad as some of the bilge - I'm with you there. But there's no need to accept garbage just because it's not sewage.

Much more positive than much we have seen, but this is still a shoddy piece of work, and it still subtley plants its seeds.

[EternalVigilance]

Well, USA Today is hardly our friend. At the moment, the multiple battles on multiple fronts are so overt and pressing, I guess I'm not too concerned about subtleties.

Thanks for discussing it intelligently.

Same to you, Miss Marple.

[Miss Marple]

I have two sisters who are Catholic, and a brother and a sister who are not church-attenders. One Catholic and one non-religious voted for Bush...the other two for Gore. All are inclined to support President Bush on the war.

However, I can tell you right now that if they thought this "mandate from God" idea was the truth, they would think he was two bricks shy of a full load.

It is a great mistake to think that all non-religious people are democrats. I can think of quite a few commentators who are conservatives who are not particularly religious.

I understand your thinking, but you apparently have little contact with folks who are in the middle on politics. Phrases like this make them nervous, regardless of how we see things.

[EternalVigilance]

I understand your thinking, but you apparently have little contact with folks who are in the middle on politics.

Well, that's a bit of a presumptious thing to say, but okay.

If we've come to a day when it is a negative for our President to have a solid faith to carry him through troubled times, there isn't much hope for us anyway.

[Miss Marple]

Let me elaborate on MY point of view. I think that in answer to prayer God did allow Bush to win the election. He is the only man who was running who had the fortitude, character, and faith to conduct this war and the only one who had the humility to hire a stellar cabinet.

I personally see the hand of God in much of the last two years. HOWEVER, I know that saying this to my family will simply make them roll their eyes and talk amongst themselves. On matters like this, it is best to let people draw their own conclusions.

[Cosmo]

i'd say this article is saturated with heresay and inuendo. Who on is team, for example, is questioning the war strategery? I wouldn't be surprised to learn the author just made this up and I'm really getting tired of anonymous sources. I might as well get my news from the Star or Weekly World News, for that matter.

[Miss Marple]

Reading your comment, I see that I am not making my point. I don't think that most people think having a solid faith is bad. I do think that the way Evans is quoted makes it sound like Bush has delusions of grandeur. I hope that you understand the difference in what I am criticizing.

[McGavin999]

I pray every day that God with give him strength and comfort. Yes, you can see the strain on him, but he's holding up well under it, he has no choice. We are all depending on him, and the troops have faith in him.

God is gracious to give him to us in this time.

[PfromHoGro]

In case you missed it (unlikely) this was passing through yesterday: One day on the Potomac...

The Pope is visiting DC and President Bush takes him out for an afternoon on the Potomac...sailing on the president's yacht, the Sequoia. They're admiring the
sights when, all of a sudden, the Pope's hat (zucchetto) blows off his head and out into the water. Secret service guys start to launch a boat, but Bush waves them off, saying "Wait, wait. I'll take care of this. Don't worry."
Bush then steps off the yacht onto the surface of the water and walks out to the Holy Father's little hat, bends over and picks it up, then walks back to the yacht and climbs aboard. He hands the hat to the Pope amid stunned silence.

The next morning the topic of conversation among Democrats on the hill, Hollywood celebrities, and in France and Germany is:

"Bush Can't Swim."

[EternalVigilance]

I'm hearing you.

I just read the piece and saw the man that I'm proud of--George W. Bush.

He really is performing tremendously.

[McGavin999]

It really wasn't a bad article. Yes, it's skewed a bit, but then it's written by a liberal journalist and after you take that into consideration, it does show a grudging respect growing for the man. I'm sure the libs hate it, but they have to admit he's quite a leader. One we can all be proud of.

[LisaAnne]

Bush thinks he has a mandate from God (scary to all non-religious people)
None of those folks like him to begin with--in fact they hate him viscerally. But they are a minority.

I am not "religious", and I do not hate him. I worked for his election and believe he is one of the finest presidents we will ever have. Sometimes ya'll sound a bit arrogant.