Iraq: The Undeniable Victory of George W. Bush – Le Figaro, France
Mar 12th, 2010 | 9 responses
Now that Iraq has held what is widely percieved to be successful nationwide elections, is it time for the critics of George W. Bush to admit that Iraq has turned out to be a success? This article by columnist Ivan Rioufol of France’s Le Figaro argues that without the much-derided former president and his neoconservative allies, there would be no democracy in Iraq.
For Le Figaro, Ivan Rioufol writes in part:
Will history finally give its due to George W. Bush? Launched seven years after the fall of Saddam Hussein, it is indeed his policy of democratizing Iraq that is asserting itself – election after election and despite serious initial strategic errors. … But generally speaking, the media are taking care not to recall the paternity of this success, which contradicts their sheep-like and anti-Bushist analyses.
The followers of “soft-power,” those new Munichites [appeasers] who have the upper hand in France, remain ready to temporize in the face of the new “Islamo-Fascism,” a designation of Bush and the neoconservatives. If the “anti-warriors” had been followed, there would be no democracy in Iraq.
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9 Responses to “Iraq: The Undeniable Victory of George W. Bush – Le Figaro, France”
Too funny.
Saddam had elections too. He just repressed certain groups that would have voted against him. Now with thousands of American dead, 100s of thousands of Iraqi dead, 2 million refugees and a trillion dollars spent we have an Shiite majority that represses the Sunni vote and the Kurds effectively having an independent state. I suppose this is progress, but don't praise Bush for an unlawful, unjustified and incompetent invasion and occupation.
Well said bill_k.
GreenDreams posted a link to how life in Iraq prior to George Bush's invasion that I think deserves to to be posted again.
Iraq is a success for Bush because it is now a “democracy”? HA! Bush didn't invade Iraq to make it a democracy, it's certainly not what the Iraqis wanted, which if you stop and think about it you'll realize how absurd the “Iraq is a success because it is now a democracy” statement is.
You can't force democracy on a whole country filled only people who don't want it and call it democracy.
Pyrrhic victory with no actual justification for the cost. Is America going to spend trillions on saving every dictatorship in the world? If it did that, then the invasion to invade Iraq would seem less idiotic in hindsight.
Every American, most everybody, everywhere is hopeful for the Iraqi nation. My fervent prayer is that we don't ever attempt this again, anywhere! Dubya, Turd Bloss, Wolfie, Dickie, Condi, Rummy, none of them, not one of them ever understood what they had stepped in when they attacked Iraq. Remember Dubya and “Mission Accomplished” on board the USS Lincoln when in a speech delivered from the flight deck, he told the nation that major combat operations in Iraq had ended.
Dubya's extemporaneous remarks give the best insight into the man's mindlessness:
“You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror.” –interview with CBS News' Katie Couric, Sept. 6, 2006
“The same folks that are bombing innocent people in Iraq were the ones who attacked us in America on September the 11th.” –Washington, D.C., July 12, 2007
“I'm the commander — see, I don't need to explain — I do not need to explain why I say things. That's the interesting thing about being president.” –as quoted in Bob Woodward's Bush at War
“Oh, no, we're not going to have any casualties.” –discussing the Iraq war with Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson in 2003, as quoted by Robertson
“I think I was unprepared for war.” –on the biggest regret of his presidency, ABC News interview, Dec. 1, 2008
My all time favorite: “I'm the commander — see, I don't need to explain — I do not need to explain why I say things. That's the interesting thing about being president.” –as quoted in Bob Woodward's Bush at War
If this trend towards a real democracy in Iraq continues, the policy of Bush turns out to be a big succes. His choices changed a nation suprressed by a mass murderer, -a pain in the ass for everybody-, into an potential example for the arabic region…. a free democratic rich country…. a stabe supplier of oil and a big customer of goods from the US….
Look again, the US gets very little Iraqi oil and most of the goods being consumed are defrayed by the American taxpayer. Let's hope it stays a “free democratic rich country” and free from US taxpayers' wallets.
I wish we wouldn't post junk opinion…sorry…but this guy is nothing but a French Cheney from the Atlantis Institute. This guy in no way represents French opinion…not even a large minority…basically just a fraction.