- WASHINGTON -- President George
W Bush defended his policies yesterday in the face of mounting criticism
of the Iraqi conflict, saying he had acted to protect Americans from a
"madman", Saddam Hussein.
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- With senior aides in his administration openly bickering,
and America's diplomatic efforts stalling at the United Nations, the White
House is seeking to rally the nation with a public relations offensive.
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- "I acted because I was not about to leave the security
of the American people in the hands of a madman," Mr Bush told National
Guardsmen and reservists in New Hampshire. "I was not about to stand
by and wait and trust in the sanity and restraint of Saddam Hussein."
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- In a sideswipe at his critics who have highlighted the
failure to find weapons of mass destruction, he added: "Who could
possibly think that the world would be better off with Saddam Hussein still
in power?"
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- His address was the centrepiece of an effort by the White
House to counter the media's "negative" picture of post-Saddam
Iraq, with its focus on terrorist attacks and loss of life, and to purvey
instead a more positive message about improvements to the daily lives of
Iraqis.
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- With the Democrats stepping up their attacks, Mr Bush
hit back at their criticism, saying that "timid actions" or "bitter
words" were not enough to defend America.
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- "Now our country is approaching a choice. America
cannot retreat from our responsibilities and hope for the best. Our security
will not be gained by timid measures," he said.
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- "Our security requires constant vigilance and decisive
action. I believe America has only one option. We must fight this war until
our work is done."
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- The audience of military part-timers - whose traditional
loyalty may be questioned now that they face far longer stints in Iraq
than most had bargained for - was carefully chosen, as was the timing,
six months to the day after Saddam fell.
-
- The capture of Baghdad on April 9 was the high point
of Mr Bush's presidency and a moment encapsulated by the image of Saddam's
statue in Baghdad toppling.
-
- The famous scene was replayed on national television
networks yesterday along with footage of Mr Bush's speech. But this time
the image was accompanied by commentary pointing out that it has been downhill
for the White House since then.
-
- A CBS/New York Times opinion poll last week suggested
there were growing doubts over the cost of the war, with only 41 per cent
saying it was worth the price, although about 50 per cent said it was worth
overthrowing Saddam. The new campaign was part of an overhaul of the US
mission in Iraq unveiled on Monday when it emerged that the White House
was taking a more direct role, apparently at the expense of the Pentagon.
-
- This prompted a rare public spat between administration
officials, with Donald Rumsfeld, the defence secretary, voicing irritation
when asked about the changes, saying he had not been consulted about them
by the new supremo, Condoleezza Rice, the national security adviser.
-
- The White House and the Pentagon have tried to play down
talk of a rift. But even some of the administration's most hawkish supporters
say it has been a sticky month. The latest setback has been the failure
to win over enough support for its draft new UN resolution.
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- Mr Bush also focused on the economy, the key to many
a president's electoral chances in the past.
-
- Before his speech, Mr Bush stopped at a pizza parlour,
Caesario's, in Manchester, New Hampshire. Although he likes to insist that
his re-election campaign has not yet begun, yesterday was his fourth visit
to the tiny New England state which is the scene of the first primary contest
of the presidential election season.
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- Mr Bush insisted: "This is not a campaign stop,
I'm just hungry."
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- © Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited 2003.
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- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003
/10/10/wirq110.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/10/10/ixnewstop.html
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