Reacting to the firestorm surrounding Bob Woodward’s latest offering, “State of Denial,” the White House decided to “set the record straight” by issuing Myth/Fact: Five Key Myths in Bob Woodward’s Book. It’s a toss-up on which is more ridiculous…the thought of this administration actually knowing the difference between a myth and a fact, or the stretch they had to do to come up with five examples from the book to dispute.
Let me start with and dismiss myth-buster #5, part II, where Laura Bush is alleged to have wanted Donald Rumsfeld removed:
FACT: “Mrs. Bush’s Office Has Said, Not True … Flatly Not True.” (Tony Snow, Press Briefing, Washington, DC, 9/29/06)
I’ll give them this one. Why? Because I have as much interest in Laura Bush’s opinion on national security matters as I have in Nancy Reagan’s belief in the occult. In other words, none. But let’s look at the others…
MYTH #1: Woodward Says The Facts Of A May 24 Intelligence Assessment Refuted The President’s Forecasts In A Chicago Speech Two Days Earlier. (Bob Woodward, State Of Denial, 2006)
FACT: President Bush Knows We Are In A Tough, Critical Struggle And Consistently Reminds The American People Of This, Including In His Chicago Remarks.
They go on to give five examples from that Chicago speech to show that Bush knows that Iraq continues to be hard work.
Our nation has been through three difficult years in Iraq. And the way forward will bring more days of challenge and loss.
What they don’t mention is that Bush followed that line by describing the setbacks as being things like abu Ghraib (solved), that the terrorists feared democracy and that:
…the day they feared has arrived. And with it has come a moment of great clarity: The terrorists can kill the innocent, but they cannot stop the advance of freedom. (Applause.)
The next example was:
The Path To Freedom Is Always One Of Struggle And Sacrifice. And In Iraq, Our Brave Men And Women In Uniform Have Accepted The Struggle And Have Made The Sacrifice.
They forgot to mention that he followed that line with a lie:
This moment would not be possible without their courage. The United States of America is safer because of their success…(Applause.)
Safer? Not according to April’s National Intelligence Estimate. And the next example of Bush’s reality-based remarks was:
The [Iraqi] Government Is Still A Work In Progress, And Overcoming Longstanding Divisions Will Take Time. Iraq’s New Leaders Know They Have A Great Deal Of Work Ahead To Broaden The Base Of Their Government And To Unite The People.
The fact sheet doesn’t mention that this was followed by Bush waxing poetic about the new government, finishing with:
And they’re rich in cultural and historical and religious sites that one day could draw millions of tourists and pilgrims from across the world. Iraq’s new leaders understand that so long as they remain united there is no limit to the potential of their country. (Applause.)
Book your flights and beat the rush! And finally:
And I Can Understand Why People Are Concerned About Whether Or Not Our Strategy Can Succeed, Because Our Progress Is Incremental. Freedom Is Moving, But It’s In Incremental Steps.
But they don’t bother to tell that that was followed with:
And the enemy’s progress is almost instant on their TV screens. And, of course, I get briefings from our commanders on the ground. I want to assure you that the information — I make my mind up based not upon politics or political opinion polls, but based upon what the commanders on the ground tell me is going on. (Applause.)
You see? Freedom is really moving but the terrorist PR machine makes things seem worse than they are…but Bush knows what’s really going on…stay the course!
Now on to Myth #2:
MYTH #2: Woodward Claims The Administration Ignored Paul Bremer’s Requests For More Troops. (Bob Woodward, State Of Denial, 2006)
And to prove this was a lie, this fact sheet says that Donald Rumsfeld considered the request and Peter Pace considered the request. For the record, that’s two members of the administration. They turned down Bremner’s request but they read the memo so this means they didn’t ignore it…they didn’t send the needed troops, but they didn’t ignore it.
Myth #3:
MYTH #3: Woodward Claims Condoleezza Rice Brushed Off George Tenet And Cofer Black’s July 2001 Warning About Al Qaeda. (Bob Woodward, State Of Denial, 2006)
Their defense? The 9/11 Commission Report didn’t mention this so it didn’t happen. Of course the 9/11 report doesn’t mention a word of Bush and Cheney’s testimony, so apparently that didn’t happen either.
Myth #4:
MYTH #4: Woodward Claims Gen. Abazaid Alleged Sec. Rumsfeld “Doesn’t Have Any Credibility Anymore.” (Bob Woodward, State Of Denial, 2006)
They then cite a New York Times article saying that Abazaid denied this. What does the article actually say?
On Friday, however, Maj. Chris Karns, a spokesman for the United States Central Command, said General Abizaid had denied ever telling visitors in Qatar that Mr. Rumsfeld “doesn’t have any credibility anymore” to make the case for strategy in Iraq.
Okay, he didn’t tell visitors in Qatar. How about in Kuwait or Iraq or the United States or anywhere else in the world?
Myth #5:
MYTH #5: Woodward Claims Then-Chief Of Staff Andy Card Tried To Remove Sec. Rumsfeld, And Mrs. Bush Also Wanted Him Removed. (Bob Woodward, State Of Denial, 2006)
The fact sheet again cites the previously mentioned New York Times article. What Card said:
Right after the election, I went to Camp David and talked to the president, and we talked about a lot of changes, starting with the chief of staff. It’s not inaccurate to say that we talked about Rumsfeld. I can understand why Bob would try to create a climate around these conversations. There was no campaign, and I didn’t go out and solicit others to back any view about getting rid of anyone. I could talk about these things with the president, and plant seeds, because there is a cadence to life in Washington and you raise these issues periodically.
So, Card agrees that he did talk to Bush about removing Rumsfeld. That he didn’t “campaign” for it or ask for others to help him doesn’t make the charge untrue.
The Bush White House wouldn’t know a fact if it bit them in the rear.