President George W. Bush claims that God did so.
Having given the order, the president walked alone around the circle behind the White House. Months later, he told Woodward: “As I walked around the circle, I prayed that our troops be safe, be protected by the Almighty. Going into this period, I was praying for strength to do the Lord’s will. I’m surely not going to justify war based upon God. Understand that. Nevertheless, in my case, I pray that I be as good a messenger of his will as possible. And then, of course, I pray for forgiveness.”
more…
Did Mr. Bush ask his father for any advice? “I asked the president about this. And President Bush said, `Well, no,’ and then he got defensive about it,” says Woodward. “Then he said something that really struck me. He said of his father, `He is the wrong father to appeal to for advice. The wrong father to go to, to appeal to in terms of strength.’ And then he said, `There’s a higher Father that I appeal to.'”
Beyond not asking his father about going to war, Woodward was startled to learn that the president did not ask key cabinet members either. CBS News, Woodward Shares War Secrets
“I’m driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, ‘George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan.’ And I did, and then God would tell me, ‘George go and end the tyranny in Iraq,’ and I did.” Independent, 7Oct2005
After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the former official said, he was told that Bush felt that “God put me here” to deal with the war on terror. The President’s belief was fortified by the Republican sweep in the 2002 congressional elections; Bush saw the victory as a purposeful message from God that “he’s the man,” the former official said. Publicly, Bush depicted his reëlection as a referendum on the war; privately, he spoke of it as another manifestation of divine purpose. The New Yorker: Fact
I bolded the *megalomaniacal God statements.
*megalomania
1 : a mania for great or grandiose performance
2 : a delusional mental disorder that is marked by infantile feelings of personal omnipotence and grandeur
[This was originally a long DKos comment searching for backup on the Bush “God told me to go to war” quote.]
