Bush's Latest Flip Flop

[Salon]:

Lauer: "You said to me a second ago, one of the things you'll lay out in your vision for the next four years is how to go about winning the war on terror. That phrase strikes me a little bit. Do you really think we can win this war on terror in the next four years?"

President Bush: "I have never said we can win it in four years."

Lauer: "So I'm just saying can we win it? Do you see that?"

President Bush: "I don't think you can win it."

Later on, White House spokesman Dan Bartlett explained:

"BLITZER: All right. A lot of confusion today over what the president meant when he said that the war on terror is not winnable, you can't exactly win this war. What exactly did he mean by that?"

"BARTLETT: Anybody who has heard this president the last three years has demonstrated that he understands that we can win this war on terror ... When he said we can't win it, what he is saying is that this, it, Al Qaida is not a conventional enemy, not one that's going to sign up to a treaty and say we surrender..."

"WOODRUFF: But when he was asked that almost identical question on CNN just a few weeks ago, the same question, can the war on terror be won, he said absolutely it can be won."

"BARTLETT: That's what I'm saying."

"WOODRUFF: So which is it?"

"BARTLETT: Exactly..."

•  I think...

  I think this is a convenient slam during the convention, but it is semantics...but hey, so are the votes on the $87 billion, so who's counting?

  I think the proper response here is to keep pressure on Bush.  "This is a serious charge. Mr. Bush is sending kids to die in Iraq for an unwinnable war, which he now admits.   I am amazed that the Republicans have the audacity to question why Mr. Kerry's stellar record both in fighting a war and objecting to that non-winnable war's continuation in 1960 are not relevant for these times..." etc etc...use their "confusion" between the war on terror and the war in iraq back at these sunsabitches...

  Essentially, though, Bush was wrong when he said we could win a war on terror.  As Richard Clarke said, "you can't win a war against a tactic".

  Funny, Bush's admission shows the rhetoric for what it truly is...empty rhetoric.

  by TexasDemocrat on Tue Aug 31, 2004 at 01:23:23 PM PDT

•  and back to flip

  On USA Today today:

  "Bush: 'We will win' war on terror--President changes stance"

  Bush now saying 'we will win' terror war

  by nedog on Tue Aug 31, 2004 at 02:25:09 PM PDT