Bush Did Not Order Plan to Rescue Troop

AP | 4/02/03 | SCOTT LINDLAW

[kattracks]

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush had advance knowledge of the plan to rescue Pfc. Jessica Lynch from an Iraqi hospital, the White House spokesman said Wednesday.

"The president had a hint of it earlier the day, but the tactical decisions were made by General (Tommy) Franks and his commanders on the ground about exactly what to do and where to do it," said Ari Fleischer.

The White House said the incident illustrated Bush's style as commander in chief. He approved a broad, flexible military plan for the war and is leaving all but the biggest decisions to Franks, the sole exception thus far being the surprise March 19 airstrikes targeting Saddam Hussein.

If U.S. intelligence gives military leaders another crack at Saddam, Franks could act without Bush's prior approval, White House aides have said.

Bush learned of Lynch's rescue at 4:50 p.m. EST Tuesday during his afternoon call with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. "That's great," he told Rumsfeld.

Bush later learned that 11 bodies, some of them believed to be Americans, were found with her, Fleischer said.

Fleischer said Bush was "full of joy for Jessica Lynch and her family" but also "mindful of the fact that we have others who are unaccounted for, who are missing in action, who are POWs and of course who have lost their lives."

Bush spoke Wednesday with the leaders of Spain, Qatar, and Kuwait. He will meet with President Jorge Batlle of Uruguay at the White House on April 23, Fleischer said.

[CougarGA7]

Guess what? Gore lost. This President doesn't micro-manage everything. He delegates like all good leaders do.

[Wake Up America]

Gosh Remember Clinton?

He was so hands on I couldn't stand it.

He was EVERYWHERE! Couldn't be anything that happened that he did not show up on the scene. ALL OVER AMERICA he would travel!! Acting like he was the Governor of every State in the Union.

I believe Al Gore would have been worse! So glad he isn't the President of Amercia now.

I trust President Bush. He is honest.

[Linda]

I'm glad someone on this forum sees it like it is.

[kimchi lover]

I saw the press conference on TV and I was DISGUSTED with these 'journalists'. They kept hounding Ari about "what did the president know, did he sign-off on it, when did he know, how did he know?????". I really don't know what the heck they were getting at. It was really annoying.

[Mark]

I heard one conservative yesterday that said you could have one American tank in combat take out 12 Iraqi tanks and one enemy round destroy one of the American tank treads, and you could see a headline in some paper being " Iraqi Forces Disable American Tank ".

[Columbine]

Did any of you see Ari's briefing today?

The focus of most of the pack changed from "we are bogged down" to "when did the President know", "how involved is he" and "what is his state of mind."

I guess they got new talking points from the DNC.

[Right Brother]

If Clinton was still President, he'd be on his way to Germany for a photo-op and likely try to cop a feel once he got there.

[Psycho_Bunny]

My understanding was that the strike on the 19th AND the strike on Iraqi TV were both "Presidential decisions".

I'm not taking issue with the way Bush has handled this so far. The Iraqi TV decision may have been because Franks decided it was risky enough to go to the president and double-check....which is fine with me.

I'm merely pointing out that the reporter was wrong.

[Howlin]

I seem to recall hearing a military spokesman staying that it was a Presidential decision.

From the article:

and is leaving all but the biggest decisions to Franks, the sole exception thus far being the surprise March 19 airstrikes targeting Saddam Hussein.

The information came to the White House concerning Saddam's whereabouts late in the afternoon. They met from about 4 until the decision was made to go at about 7:30.

After the decision was made and was being implemented, Bush decided to address the nation.

[lonestar]

If you believe that, you don't have a clue to the real George W. Bush.

[Lanza]

I swear you would think Bush tried to keep them from going to rescue her looking at that title.

[Psycho_Bunny]

?....I don't understand what you're saying.

[Howlin]

This was Campbell Brown's "thing" today at Ari's presser. She hammered about it for about ten mintues.

She, if I recall correctly, is the one who couldn't believe Bush didn't drag up a chair and watch ALL the coverage on TV like the rest of us do. As if he doesn't have better information that coming from the likes of her.

Dolts, the lot of them.

[Wake Up America]

Yes and why were the press not asking questions about Clinton up in the Oval Office with his girl friend, while Arafat was 'waiting' to speak with him??

Does anyone remember this??

[Howlin]

I'm saying they were going to start the next night, but they got a tip that Saddam and all his henchmen were in that bunker; they had a meeting in the Situation Room and decided to go ahead and take the risk.

Bush made the decision to go ahead that night, and then start the "real war," if you will, the next night like they had originally planned.

That's why there was no notice of a presidential speech until the last minute.

[Wake Up America]

Newt Gingrich said that!!

[Amerigomag]

My understanding was that the strike on the 19th AND the strike on Iraqi TV were both "Presidential decisions

You're right but they were not military decisions, they were political decisions. They were not tactical nor even strategic.

The regime was going to carry on with or without Saddam as recent events have shown and the broadcasting decision was aimed at a handful of domestic parents and Al'Jazeera internationally.

Neither the strike against Saddam or the TV transmitters were of much tactical value. They were both political feel good gestures.

[philetus]

SCOTT LINDLAW of AP tries to recue liberals, singlehanded.

[eureka!]

Re#33 No surprise. Not to worry though. Americans have gotten to know W and they trust him. They know he cares and all the Browns, Kourics et al. won't change that. The shriller the presstitutes become, the sillier they look...

[Captain Beyond]

What everybody is missing here is the huge difference between Bush and Clinton in how things are handled. Instead of Bush cashing in on the rescue politically and turning it into a publicity stunt, like Clinton would have done, he is showing class in letting the army make the decisions then having them take credit for it where credit is due. The way it should be.

Had this been Bill Clinton you would have had Dee Dee Meyers, George Stephanopoulos, Mike McCurry, and Joe Lockhart out there giving us inside details of how Slick agonized nightly over the capture of POW's and in his ever waking hour he was working on a plan to rescue them. That he was in touch and guiding the Special Forces as they rescued her. Slick would have had her delivered to the White House lawn to get a Photo-Op of himself helping carry the stretcher while getting her phone number.