Vintage Bush

I liked the President's speech tonight and also enjoyed seeing some familiar faces in the crowd at Ft. Bragg. One of the guys I worked with the last time I was down there was able to slide in for a handshake and some TV face time, so I am sure he will catch some ribbing tomorrow.

High Points:

Explaining how the terrorists have failed: Our press highlights coalition failures (even if they have to spin stories into "failure"), but they rarely explain how the terrorists have failed in all of their goals. Bush did a nice job in pointing that out.

New Steps: He was a little vague about how we were conducting more combined ops and using coalition transition teams (probably coalition support teams with a different spin), but he got the point across that we are conducting fewer unilateral ops. Which ties in with his most important point...

End Game: We will stand down when the Iraqis stand up. Will we know to the day when that transition will occur? No, but we know we are getting closer every day. We know they have achieved sovereignty, held a vote, built up an Army and security forces, and we know they are heading toward a Constitution and then another vote. Bush had to nail this one, not because it will quiet the "quagmire" critics who give aid and comfort to the enemy, but because his comments will reassure the American people.
Politics