The President's speech should be required reading for all Americans.
Below is the key quote from President Bush's speech today to the American Legion convention in Salt Lake City. This is not a political statement, yet the initial 'Big Media' analysis has been to link it to partisan politics. Here is the New York Times quote from two Democrat leaders:
"Democrats were quick to denounce the president's speech. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the minority leader, said the president's 'failed policies' have made the United States less safe in the past five years. Democrats will lead the American people with tough and smart policies that will make us safer by beginning the redeployment of troops from Iraq, refocusing our efforts on the war on terror, and protecting Americans from terrorism here at home,' Mr. Reid said.
And Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts called the speech 'a cynical attempt to help his Republican enablers survive the November elections at a time when he should be spending all of his time working to chart a new course in Iraq.'
(my comment: The Democrat leaders have added nothing to the policy discussion. Where is their alternative? How would it help? They are close to the edge of being non-patriots. Yet The Times believes alternative voices must be heard, though they are purely political and lacking substance.)
This President has not made a political statement. He speaks the truth and Americans of all political parties and persuasions should be able to embrace it as a key reason for our national war policy. If the Democrats and President Bush's opponentsdifferentiapproach approah, let's hear it.
Those who refuse to accept the reality of Islamic fascism (I call them RATs) that threatens us do not understand the nature of the world today or are so blinded by their biases they become a detriment to our country's success in this war.
Dissent and debate over the particulars of how the war on terrorists should be conducted are valid, but no disagreement should exist on the basic goals of our enemies as stated today by the President. Those who argue with the present strategy have a responsibility to present a different, hopefully better, alternative. Let's hear it.
Sitting on the sidelines taking pot shots, as so many people do, particularly those who oppose Bush, is not helpful behavior.
"When terrorists murder at the World Trade Center, or car bombers strike in Baghdad, or hijackers plot to blow up planes over the Atlantic, or terrorist militias shoot rockets at Israeli towns, they are all pursuing the same objective -- to turn back the advance of freedom, and impose a dark vision of tyranny and terror across the world. The enemies of liberty come from different parts of the world, and they take inspiration from different sources. Some are radicalized followers of the Sunni tradition, who swear allegiance to terrorist organizations Qaidaal Qaeda. Others are radicalized followers of the Shia tradition, who join groups like Hezbollah and take guidance from state sponsors like Syria and Iran. Still others are 'homegrown' terrorists -- fanatics who live quietly in free societies they dream to destroy. Despite their differences, these groups from -- form the outlines of a single movement, a worldwide network of radicals that use terror to kill those who stand in the way of their totalitarian ideology. And the unifying feature of this movement, the link that spans sectarian divisions and local grievances, is the rigid conviction that free societies are a threat to their twisted view of Islam. The war we fight today is more than a military conflict; it is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century. (Applause.) On one side are those who believe in the values of freedom and moderation -- the right of all people to speak, and worship, and live in liberty. And on the other side are those driven by the values of tyranny and extremism -- the right of a self-appointed few to impose their fanatical views on all the rest. As veterans, you have seen this kind of enemy before. They're successors to Fascists, to Nazis, to Communists, and other totalitarians of the 20th century. And history shows what the outcome will be: This war will be difficult; this war will be long; and this war will end in the defeat of the terrorists and totalitarians, and a victory for the cause of freedom and liberty."
(My disagreement with the quote above: the previous wars were much shorter than this one will be simply because the number or people (Islam) involved and the several countries that sponsor and support terrorists are much larger than in the wars we have fought and won before.)
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