====== FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ======
America First Party
1630 A 30th Street #111
Boulder, Colorado 80301
http://www.AmericaFirstParty.org
Monday, May 24, 2004
President Bush Still Doesn't Get It
Boulder, CO - This evening, President Bush gave a speech to a handpicked
audience at the US Army War College regarding Iraq. In response,
America First Party National Chairman Dan Charles issued the following
statement:
"It is about time that President Bush made an effort to level with the
American people about Iraq. It is about time the President let us know
his plans for our tax money, our armed forces, our national honor, and
our impatient wards in Iraq. Unfortunately, he failed yet again.
"While he made a strong case that his field commanders have learned
from their mistakes, it is clear that the President has failed to learn
from his, and still refuses to own up to his own mistakes.
"Pre-invasion Iraq may have been a threat to its neighbors. Its
government was clearly a threat to its own people, but the facts on the
ground, both then and now, show that Iraq was only a threat to the
United States in the imagination of the President and key members of
his administration.
"Tonight, the President claimed that the current fighting in Iraq makes
it the central front in the War on Terrorism. If that is so, then it is
only so because the President's policies toward Iraq have made it
so. Despite his claim again this evening, there is no credible evidence
of any link between Iraq and 9-11. There was no Iraq-Al Queda connection, until we invaded Iraq.
"We were hopeful that the plan laid out tonight would be a success, and
that this policy mistake would soon be over and our troops would be
home, protecting our borders, not Iraq's. But all we got was a 'stay
the course' plan that is flawed--both as policy and philosophy.
"Central to the President's plan is the handover of 'sovereignty' on
June 30th. He says that this will show the Iraqi people that we are not
occupiers. This belief is wrongheaded and mistaken. So long as American
troops are patrolling Iraqi streets, manning checkpoints, and
conducting military operations on Iraqi soil, we will be seen as
occupiers.
"President Bush bragged tonight that he goes to the UN at every
opportunity. When he wrongly believed that our national security was at
stake, he went to the UN to ask permission to defend our nation. This
was a mistake. Now, his plan creates an interim government, appointed
by the UN. This is another mistake. The UN should never be in the
business of choosing the leaders of any nation.
"President Bush's plan is predicated on the proposition that the US
government and/or the UN can and should decide the fate of other
peoples and nations. These policies (which Senator Kerry may or may not
endorse based on the direction of the wind and who proposes them) are
naive and wrongheaded and contribute to the perception that we are an
arrogant and selfish people.
"For the benefit of the American people, the American taxpayer, and the
brave men and women of our armed forces who are being misused, the
America First Party calls for as rapid and rational an exit from Iraq
as is possible. Our goal should be to hold Iraqi elections in September
and have our troops home in time to vote at their local precincts this
November. Any other course is based on hubris and self-delusion. It is
time the Iraqi people were given control of their own fate.
"After all this time, after all the opportunity for common sense to
sink in, it is clear to us: President Bush still doesn't get it. He has
a policy problem, not a perception problem."
Contacts:
Dan Charles, National Chairman, 1-866-SOS-USA1, ext. 4
Romelle Winters, Press Secretary, 1-866-SOS-USA1, ext. 2
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