Progress Pond

President Bush, Prime Minister Blair Come To Visit, Converse With Me ©

Betsy L Angert


All words attributed to George W. Bush are his. He said these at his Thursday night, May 25, 2006, press conference.
Possibly, you, as I, look forward to our meetings with the President, infrequent as they are.  Perhaps, that is why we treasure them so.  These conferences are rare, though, nevertheless, a treat.  When President George W. Bush asks Prime Minister Tony Blair to accompany him, well that is truly a delight.  I am overjoyed.  I revel in these exchanges.  I can hardly wait to invite the two in my parlor for a chat.  This Thursday night was such an occasion.

While the hour was late in London, and therefore, few Englishmen and women would be able to join us, I acknowledged that I was fortunate.  Two men of such great stature, power, and fame [infamy] were coming to visit me.  We would gather in my living room.  They stated earlier that they were ready, willing, and of course able to discuss politics, particularly the Iraqi war.  This was such a dream come true.
I invited each of my guests to speak first. I requested they share their points of view; I would listen, and then discuss. Blair spoke some, though his words were not as poignant as those of the President. Mr. Bush has a style and finesse that is engaging, thus, he and I conversed.

President Bush proposed, “The United States and Great Britain will work together to help this new democracy succeed.”  I inquired, is it not true that a Democracy is a government chosen by the people and not forced upon them through war?

He ignored me and continued, “We’ll take advantage of this moment of opportunity and work with Iraq’s new government to strengthen this young democracy and achieve victory over our common enemies.”  “Common enemies,” I blurted out.  Might we the aggressors not be seen as adversaries?  

Did we not invade a country without reason or a request?  Did America and Great Britain not choose to unilaterally attack a nation of people merely to overthrow their leader?  Did the “allies” and “broad coalition” not create turmoil in a land that once entertained at least a sense of stability and could they have not achieved a similar turn without all the killing?  President Bush remained placid.

Mr. Bush remained good-natured and composed.  His stilted smirk never betrayed him.  His monologue, his mantra was steady.  The naked Emperor  said, “Despite setbacks and missteps, I strongly believe we did and are doing the right thing.”  

Mr. President I retorted loudly, “Do you really believe it was correct to enter a country on false and contrived pretenses?”  “Do you think killing the young, the innocent, and the unarmed in worthy?”  Do you honestly believe, battles such as the ones that you yourself, even in your youth were never willing to engage in are just?”  “Mr. President,” I declared, “I think not!”

George W. Bush looked over at me, wincingly, and said, “The decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power was controversial.  We did not find the weapons of mass destruction that we all believed were there, and that’s raised questions about whether the sacrifice in Iraq has been worth it.”

As I stated, he repeated, “Despite setbacks and missteps, I strongly believe we did and are doing the right thing.”  After all, “Saddam Hussein was a menace to his people.  He was a state sponsor of terror.  He invaded his neighbors.”  “Oh, sir,” I proclaimed with a shrug, “Is it only because there is an ocean and other countries between us that you do not believe that we too, America, invaded one or more of its neighbors?”  “Are we not as a state, as a nation, sponsoring terror?  Look what we have and are repeatedly creating worldwide.  Both before and after our aggressions, I see little evidence of US diplomacy.”

King George II mused for a time and then replied, “We’ve learned from our mistakes, adjusted our methods, and have built on our successes.”  Have we Mr. President?

Smugly George W. acknowledged, “No question that the Iraq war has, you know, created a sense of consternation here in America.  I mean, when you turn on your TV screen and see innocent people die day in and day out, it affects the mentality of our country.”  Turn on your television see what?  Mr. Bush, it has been documented repeated, not since Vietnam has there been so little coverage of a war.  Your administration and Pentagon have flown the fallen and wounded in at night so that photographs cannot be taken.  Your own personnel have spoken of the Dover Effect and have worked to control against it!

Only recently, since citizens began exposing the truth of this war, has American been given more access.  Dear George, is it not true that without citizen activism, this conflict would still be invisible?

Hemming and hawing, King George reluctantly offered, “Listen, I want our troops out, don’t get me wrong.  I — you know, I — I — I understand what it means to have troops in harm’s way, and I — and I know the — there’s a lot of families making huge sacrifices here in America.  I’ll be going to a Memorial Day ceremony next Monday, paying tribute to those who’ve lost their life.  I’m sure I will see families of the fallen.  I fully understand the pressures being placed upon our military and their families.”  He mumbled, “But I also understand that it is vital that we — that we do the job, that we complete the mission.”

Apologetically, though resolute, the President affirmed, “And it has been tough.  It’s been tough, because we’re fighting an unconventional enemy that is willing to kill innocent people.  There are no rules of war for these people.  But make no mistake about it.  What you’re seeing in Iraq could happen all over the world if we don’t stand fast and achieve the objective.”

A friend of mine then reflected aloud, “Mr. President, you spoke about missteps and mistakes in Iraq.  Could I ask both of you which missteps and mistakes of your own you most regret?”

Bush recounted,  “It sounds like kind of a familiar refrain here.”  The living room filled with laughter, nervous chuckling.  “Saying “Bring it on.”  Kind of tough talk, you know, that sent the wrong signal to people.  That I learned some lessons about expressing myself maybe in a little more sophisticated manner.  You know, “Wanted dead or alive,” that kind of talk.  I think in certain parts of the world it was misinterpreted.  And so I learned — I learned from that.”  I mumbled inaudibly, “you learned that good ole boy `plain speaking’ is unwise; nothing more?”

Perhaps he heard me, for he then suggested there were other lessons.  “And, you know, I think the biggest mistake that’s happened so far, at least from our country’s involvement in Iraq, is Abu Ghraib.  We’ve been paying for that for a long period of time.  And it’s — unlike Iraq, however, under Saddam, the people who committed those acts were brought to justice; they’ve been given a fair trial and tried and convicted.”  Were they Mr. President?  Did America actually judge all those that were responsible or only the “peons,” the persons that were expendable?

With that, President Bush thanked me for my hospitality and said his good-byes.  Would we meet again soon?  I suspect the answer is as the one frequently asked, “When will the war end?”  No timetable will be given.

For Fun or Fears . . .

Betsy L. Angert Be-Think

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