|
Annual Iraq Report The President Speaks to the NationBy Rick Horowitz
[An early
draft...] Good morning. Four years ago today, coalition forces launched Operation Iraqi Freedom to remove Saddam Hussein from power. They did so to eliminate the threat his regime posed to the Middle East and to the world. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Today, the world is rid of Saddam Hussein, and I say "Good riddance!" Today, the world is safe from the threat of the tyrant's weapons of mass destruction. Many predicted that getting rid of Saddam's weapons of mass destruction would take years of effort by our "coalition of the willing." These skeptics were wrong -- getting rid of those weapons took almost no time at all.
Millions of Iraqis have voted in free elections, exercising their fundamental rights as a free people. Sadly, tens of thousands of Iraqis have also lost their lives to violence, and we grieve for their sacrifice. But millions is still bigger than thousands. At this point in the war, our most important mission is helping the Iraqis secure their capital. That was also our most important mission a year ago, and a year before that, and a year before that. I am proud of the fact that our mission has remained constant over all this time. If we remain steadfast and continue to make the kind of progress we've been making, helping the Iraqis secure their capital will still be our mission next year, too. We are also continuing to train Iraqi security forces. Ultimately, we expect them to take on full responsibility for the security of the Iraqi people. Ultimately, we also expect the militias to get bored with blowing things up, and the Tigris River to turn into a really great water park. Until that time, America will continue to lend a helping hand. We have assisted the Iraqi government in establishing benchmarks for progress. While not all these benchmarks have been completely met as yet, we are confident that Iraqi leaders will continue to work to prepare to approach the vicinity of these benchmarks as rapidly as conditions on the ground permit, give or take a year or two. I have just received an update on the situation from Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki, and a briefing by video conference with General Petraeus and Ambassador Khalilzad. They shared with me the many hopeful signs those on the ground in Iraq are beginning to see there. We had a really good conversation, at least until the electricity ran out. I want to stress that this operation is still in the early stages, still in the beginning stages. Fewer than half of the troop reinforcements we are sending have arrived in Baghdad. Until all the troops have arrived, it would be unfair to criticize the progress they're making. Once all the troops have arrived, it would be unfair to criticize the progress they're making. It will always be unfair to criticize the progress they're making. Our new strategy will need more time to take effect. Four years may seem like a long time already, but compared to the Thirty Years' War, it's really nothing. And compared to the Hundred Years' War, it's even less. Both of those really happened -- it was in a book. So quit your bellyaching. Four years after this war began, the fight is difficult, but it can be won. There will be good days and there will be bad days. There will be happy days and there will be sad days. It will be tempting to look at the challenges in Iraq and conclude that our best option is to pack up and go home. But as long as we keep the terrible events of September 11 foremost in our minds, we will stay at it for as long as it takes, whatever the costs in lives and treasure, even if Saddam Hussein and Iraq had absolutely nothing to do with September 11. Besides, we're out of packing crates. God bless America. Posted 3/20/07. This
year and every year, "Rick's" is your place for award-winning commentary!
|
  |
Rick Horowitz
