Free Republic

SYDNEY -- In November 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush described what he termed the third pillar of America's security: "global democratic revolution." If Iraq and Afghanistan were the first "beneficiaries" of this revolution, then it seems almost certain that Saudi Arabia will feature somewhere in Bush's revolutionary plans. The post-Sept. 11 story portrays Saudi Arabia as the ideological and financial underpinning for global terrorism. Therefore, the only way to secure America is to liberalize and secularize Saudi Arabia. That such an accusation should be made now -- nearly 80 years after the modern state of Saudi Arabia was founded...

Some knowledge of history and the memories of a long life have given me a sense of wonder at the shape-shifting habit of ideals and the ideologues who espouse them. What brings this to mind is the eloquent and idealistic foreign-policy speech that President Bush recently gave in London. Some commentators liken Bush's rhetoric to the idealism of Ronald Reagan, but it has earlier, Democratic antecedents, both in Woodrow Wilson's war "to make the world safe for democracy" and in FDR's "Four Freedoms." In both cases, these ideals were carried forward on American bayonets. Bush's London address was masterfully crafted...

MEDIA MATTERS Cronkite: Speech by Bush 'masterful but worrisome' Former CBS newsman questions president's conviction, cites failure to 'follow through' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: November 29, 2003 4:30 p.m. Eastern © 2003 WorldNetDaily.com Walter Cronkite, the former CBS news anchor who writes a weekly opinion piece for King Features Syndicate uses a recent column to describe the foreign-policy speech President Bush gave recently in London as ''eloquent, idealistic and worrisome.'' Walter Cronkite Cronkite says Bush's address was masterfully crafted to defend his foreign policy against widespread European hostility, although parts of it sounded a bit ''off-key'', leading Cronkite to question the president's...

It may be too early to know how George W Bush’s state visit to London, the first ever by a US President, will playback in Peoria. But it seems that part of the America media, focusing on sporadic anti-American demonstrations in London, has decided to present it as a symbol of “global anger against the United States.” What has happened in London in the past few days, however, is more complex. To be sure, London has witnessed a series of demonstrations in the past week or so. None, however, attracted more than a few hundred people, although the “final bouquet”,...

Would you believe it? Not only can that Texan halfwit speak in proper sentences, he is even capable of reading a good speech and not fluffing his lines. It only goes to show what you can do with a speechwriter and some coaching. The response to President George W Bush's speech on Wednesday has been almost universally (and so typically Britishly) condescending. Few have criticised its content; since it ranks as one of the finest delivered by a visiting leader; that would be a sneer too far. Instead, reaction has been surprise, either feigned or genuine, that he managed to...

The best line from the speech George W. Bush delivered in London on Wednesday was just nine words long. Referring to the throngs of British protesters railing against the U.S. President and the war he'd started in Iraq, Mr. Bush noted that Britain's "tradition of free speech, exercised with enthusiasm, is alive and well here in London." After the laughter subsided, he added: "They now have that right in Baghdad as well." It was the perfect segue: at once deflating the political tension surrounding his controversial trip, granting a polite nod to the protesters, and presenting listeners with the irrefutable...

Does anyone have an video link to President Bush's speech in London? All I can find are text copies..thanks

<p>November 20, 2003 -- President Bush's opening speech of his state visit to the United Kingdom yesterday was a triumph: confident, considered and packed with resonant historical references and phrases that will resound long after the trip has come to an end. Bush reiterated recent Wilsonian themes like America's commitment to a "democratic revolution" in the Mideast after decades of "tolerating oppression for the sake of stability" - while making it clear he realized that "the movement of history will not come quickly."</p>

<p>Some across the ocean might have been surprised by the grace with which President Bush opened yesterday's address at Whitehall Palace in London — praising the hospitality of his British hosts, while joking about the fact that some of his harshest critics in London would prefer to see him dangling in a box over the Thames River. But when Mr. Bush got down to business, he provided a sober and strategic assessment of how democracies decide when it becomes necessary to use force to repel an aggressor.</p>

London (CNSNews.com) - President Bush used the keynote speech of his trip to Britain on Wednesday to call for democracy in the Middle East, reaffirm his support for a strong transatlantic alliance and defend the use of force in Iraq and elsewhere. "Great responsibilities have fallen once again to the great democracies. We will face these threats with open eyes and we will defeat them," he said. "Together, our nations are standing and sacrificing for this high goal in a distant land at this very hour," he said. In an address peppered with historical references, Bush praised the "old...

President Bush's "Three Pillars" speech at Whitehall Palace today may have been the most significant of his presidency. What's more, he was almost as eloquent as Tony Blair. It must be something in the British water — or tea. Politically, his message was bad news for the neo-isolationist Right and the post-humanitarian Left. Bush made it clear that he believes freedom is the predicate for peace. He said plainly that he will not shy away from using "force when necessary in the defense of freedom." He added: [W]e cannot turn a blind eye to oppression just because the oppression is...