Bush Convenes Council of Elders

Martin Longman

19 years ago

You know the Empire is in trouble when they have to convene a council of elders to discuss the direction of foreign policy. Yesterday, Bush summoned the following luminaries:

Secretaries of State:

Madeleine Albright
Colin Powell
James A. Baker III
Lawrence Eagleburger
Alexander Haig
George Shultz

Defense secretaries:

William Cohen
William Perry
Harold Brown
Robert McNamara
Frank Carlucci
James Schlesinger
Melvin Laird

Just seeing a list of the people that have been responsible for our foreign policy over the last 40 years was a sobering jolt. These incompetent hacks are doling out advice? It explains a lot about how we got to where we are today.

Is there some law that our Secretaries of State have to be partisan thugs and warmongers?

And the idea that these people are dissatisfied with the direction of our foreign policy ought to give anyone pause.

“Not everybody around this table agreed with my decision to go into Iraq. I fully understand that,” the president said, sitting at a long table in the Roosevelt Room with his guests arrayed silently around him. “But these are good solid Americans who understand that we’ve got to succeed now that we’re there. I’m most grateful for the suggestions they’ve given. I take to heart the advice.”

The president then offered a quick summation of his strategy in Iraq that, while not getting into detail, appeared unchanged.

I’d like to know what Robert McNamera had to say. He’s seen this song and dance before. Hell, he choreographed this song and dance before.

The White House’s hope was that the prominent figures — many of whom have publicly opposed Bush on Iraq — would be persuaded by the president’s argument that he has what he called a ”dual-track strategy for victory,” and they would then spread the word.

Bush and Rumsfeld should take a page out of LBJ and McNamera’s playbook, and resign.

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