W's Dilemma: Father Doesn't Support war
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| Tue, 06-15-2004 - 4:32pm |
Bush Leagues
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Dubya's Dilemma: Daddy Doesn't Support the Iraq War
By TERESA HAMPTON
Editor, Capitol Hill Blue
The Iraqi war that has so divided Americans is also causing a rift in the family of President George W. Bush.
The President’s father, George H.W. Bush – 41st President of the United States – disagrees with his son’s decisions in the invasion and occupation of Iraq, which is why the former President has not commented in public on the war.
“The President and I discuss the war privately,†the elder Bush said in an interview earlier this year. “That is the way it will remain.â€
But sources close to the Bush family say the elder Bush thinks his son has mishandled the war in Iraq.
“They disagree on the war,†says a family confidante. “Former President Bush believes the U.S. should have sought more support before invading Iraq and feels his son did not work hard enough to secure the support of allies.â€
Former President Bush built an unprecedented coalition of allies, including countries in the Middle East, for Desert Storm, the Gulf War that ended Iraq’s invasion and occupation of Kuwait. He also enjoyed support from the United Nations. But his son invaded Iraq without UN support or the support of any prominent Middle Eastern nations.
Sources also say the elder Bush, who once headed the Central Intelligence Agency, faults his son for pressuring the CIA to provide hastily-prepared and faulty intelligence to support plans to invade Iraq.
Rumors of a rift between father and son have circulated in Washington for months and White House watchers noted, with interest, the lack of public support from the elder Bush for his son’s military action against Iraq.
“George H.W. Bush is a pro,†says Darlene Atkins, a former campaign worker for the elder Bush. “He makes sure the facts are on his side before he moves. It concerns him that his son did not exercise what he feels was appropriate caution before launching the war with Iraq.â€
Bush’s father has told Republican leaders that he fears Iraq will cost his son a second term in the White House, calling the war “his read-my-lips donnybrook,†a reference to the elder Bush’s flip-flop on tax increases that many feel led to his defeat in the 1992 elections.
In addition, the former President has told his son that he “messed up big time†in trying to tie Saddam Hussein to the 9/11 attacks against the United States. The elder Bush points out that a State Department assessment released after the September 11 attacks lists 45 countries (including the United States) where al-Qaeda operated and notes that Iraq was not one of those countries.
John McLaughlin, Deputy Director of the CIA, told Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz Iraq was not on the list. A spokesman for the Deputy Secretary confirmed McLaughlin’s briefing of Wolfowitz.
“The problem President Bush has when it comes to CIA intelligence is that his daddy knows a lot more about what goes on at Langley than he does,†says a former intelligence officer. “He also knows how the White House can drive the outcome of intel assessments.â€
Former Congressman Lee Hamilton agrees.
"My concern in these situations, always, is that the intelligence that you get is driven by the policy, rather than the policy being driven by the intelligence," says Hamilton, who is now with the Woodrow Wilson Institute, a Washington think tank. "This is not a problem unique to George Bush. It's every president I've known, and I've worked with seven or eight of them All, at some time or another, used intelligence to support their political objectives.â€
"Information is power, and the temptation to use information to achieve the results you want is almost overwhelming," Hamilton adds. "The whole intelligence community knows exactly what the president wants , and most are in their jobs because of the president – certainly the people at the top – and they will do everything they can to support the policy.â€
This misuse of intelligence is at the heart of differences between Bush, the President, and Bush the father and former President.
As public support for the war wanes, political strategists have urged the former President to come out publicly for his son’s war but their arguments have fallen on defiant ears.
“It’s easy to see where President Bush got his stubborn streak,†sighs one White House political operative.
© Copyright 2004 by Capitol Hill Blue

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If I remember correctly too far to the right and you have facism or is it anarchy--be careful!
Edited 6/16/2004 2:24 pm ET ET by hayashig
Facism: A system of government marked by centralization of authority under a dictator, stringent socioeconomic controls, suppression of the opposition through terror and censorship, and typically a policy of belligerent nationalism and racism.
For some reason it does fall on the extreme right but I can't see how. I believe in our unalienable rights and that does **NOT** (edited for typo) mesh well with facism.
Edited 6/16/2004 4:54 pm ET ET by vader716
As is everything I write. By all means, if you want to take your 'news' from anonymous sources printed here http://www.capitolhillblue.com/faq.asp , be my guest.
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My points are, it doesn't make sense, and I don't buy it.
Renee
Come on. Both Bush's made a pledge to keep their noses out of Jeb & George's baileywick's when they became governors and reaffirmed it when 43 became president.
Renee
Renee
Bush 41 may fully support the war in Iraq, maybe he doesn't. I can't say but if my son were running for the presidency and I had any influence with the voters I certainly would be vocal about it.
Jim
The Right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, doesn't mesh well with facism, unless you believe in the rights for a chosen few, but not for all.
May I remind you that I didn't post the article I just responded to it.
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OK
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Boy I should be taken out back and beaten for that one. Yes I agree with you wholeheartly.
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Jim
"The 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism" by Dr. Lawrence Britt :
Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or ev
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections."
Here's a link that makes it pertinent to today.
http://messageboards.ivillage.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=iv-ivIraq&msg=2857.1&ctx=128
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