Washington – Seven years ago, then-President George W. Bush stood beneath a banner on an aircraft carrier and declared that “major combat operations” in Iraq had ended. Wednesday, they actually did — and, by design, Bush was nowhere to be seen.
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It was a moment of political closure brought to us not by Bush, but by his successor, who delivered on a campaign promise that was the original seed from which his campaign for president grew.
As a candidate, Barack Obama vowed to end the “war” in Iraq. And though troops will remain, skirmishes will continue, and there’s no guarantee that the age-old sectarian forces in Mesopotamia won’t resume their bloody rivalry — Bush’s war is over.
Bush thinks that history will be kind to him, but that is unlikely. The war cost America more than 4,000 lives, at least a trillion dollars, and a serious loss of world esteem. And it left behind a country with no ruling government and an ever stronger Iran.
And yet, at the same time, the former president is enjoying a mini-moment of grudging acceptance, if not affection, in America.
He doesn’t dare take note of it himself, at least publicly. Were he to swagger back onto the stage, Republican friends say, the mellowing mood would evaporate — and complicate the GOP’s effort to win back Congress.
But it’s real. Several factors have combined to make it so: Obama’s declining political standing, the continuing economic crisis, the rise of divisive issues such as immigration and Islam in America (on which Bush is seen as a comparative moderate), and new fault lines within the GOP.
The left is roaring its rear-end again.
Give it up, its a lost case, bush is dearly missed, and the election will tell you all about it.
Best friend American Jewish community ever had in the White House.
Wish we had bush. August 2010 wasn’t obama’s exit strategy its a part of petreaus’s surge strategy which was opposed by barrack hussein obama. The combat troops are out but there are still 50,000 troops to support the iraqi forces which than candidate obama said not one soldier will be left in iraq 6 months after he is president. Mccain was beaten up by obama for saying that he has no problem if us troops stay in iraq 100 years as long there are no casualties like we’ve always done in germany, kuwait, korea, etc , now obama is doing that, leaving troops for an unknown period of time, what a hypocrit. Obama is taking credit for the success in iraq while blaming bush for the deficit…
I really miss him, an honost man, a gentleman, with class 2 him
Definitely a quiet resurgence: This is the first anyone has heard about it!
Congratulations to President Obama for extricating the US from combat in Iraq. We should never have been there in the first place.
OMG!!!!are these crazy!!!!Hello wake up,the success reached now in iraq his credited to ONLY ONE PERSON…G.W.BUSH!!!!(Btw Barack H.Obama)did NOT support the surge which was designed by our Old patriot president G.W.BUSH!! אוי וועט מען זיך נאך בענקען נאך אים,I guaranty you!P.S.what a hutzpa that Barak Obama still takes credit to his side!!!Hello republicans…..come out of your holes,am I correct?
yea bush was great! he only cost the country billions by invading iraq and then the economy collapsed under his watch. (and no, the housing bubble was not the sole cause of the collapse like conservatives would like to believe).
Bush was a disaster. His failures and fumbling directly led to the victory of the current administration in the last presidential election.
He made excuses for the Islamistts and refused to name our enemy.
He bungled the economy and made disastrous deals with the left wing idiots such as Ted Kennedy.
He was one of the worst presidents only exceeded by the current regime.
Good bye and don’t come back.
Lets see now…this guy was reading stories in kindergarden in Florida when the 9/11 attack was occurring on his watch…he took us into wars in Iraq and Afghanistan which wasted thousands of american lives and over a trillion dollars, let his buddies on Wall street nearly destroy the economy and gave in to the X’tan right wing lunatics on church/state separation and made Sarah Palin look like a talmid chacham.
OY, how I wish for the good ole days of George W….
To #5 - Obama had nothing to do with the combat troops leaving Iraq. The Iraqi Government in 2008 (before Obama was presented) negotiated with the U.S. Government to have all U.S. troops out of Iraq by the end of 2011. The combat troops were also requested to be out of Iraq cities by 2009, and out of Iraq by 2010. This was negotiated while Bush was still President. Obama is only receiving the kovod for it, because it is just happening now.
More leftist tripe from MSNBC – but does anybody actually listen any more? If this wasn’t posted on VIN, nobody would care!
What?!? Credit Obama?? U got be kidding.. Its like the russian boy praised the USA: I lived 12 years in Russia and didn’t get anywhere, 1 year in the US and I get Bar Mitzvah…
Only one thing to say: *BUSH WE MISS YOU* but big time!
George W Bush was one of the best presidents this great country ever had. And while many don’t feel that way its still a fact, and it make take a decade or so for many realize, but in the end history will be fair and will show how he made a real difference to this country. And for us yidden (jews) we owe him a debt of gratitude for always standing up for Israel and being such a good friend and admirer of American Jewry. We wish you all the best Mr President.
11,
Thank you PMO for your liberal spin but as usual you are WRONG!
Granted Pres Bush was not as fiscal Conservative as he should have been but to blame him for the economy is utterly ludicrous. Lets look at the deficit numbers in the budget presented by GWB to the last Republican controlled Congress and the ones passed after by the Dems. How about even looking at the last deficit presented by GWB and the QUADRUPLE of that number by your holy obama????
You fail to recall EVERYONE saying how we HAD to go into Iraq. That EVERYONE would include your idols HIllary, John F Kerry (who served in Vietnam), and EVERY other member of Congress! Even your holy Obama voted (SHOCK OF ALL SHOCKS!) to increase troops as well as give more money! They could have DEFUNDED the war but they didnt want to. WHY??
I could go on but everyone else aside for you gets the point. Stop the “Well Bush did” such and such garbage and like Obama you should GROW UP!
#18 is incorrect; 23 Senators and 133 House members voted against the war. We should be honoring them, not Bush. It is the direct result of the Bush economic and military policies that the US can’t do a bleeping thing about Iran right now. And Clinton had budget surpluses at the end of his time as President; Bush wasted them completely.