An analysis of the Washington Post's interview with Bush yesterday reveals a President who is ignoring reality. His interpretation of the elections is way off. The hope is fading that Bush has grasped the fact that he's gotten the U.S. in to an un-winnable quagmire. Bush is ignoring the elections results -- and he's adamant that he'll do the war in Iraq his way:
The comments were another strong indication of the president's determination to chart his own way forward on Iraq, no matter the election results nor any amount of free advice from senior statesmen of past administrations. Bush may well announce a major drawdown of the U.S. presence in Iraq when he appears before the nation after the turn of the year, but that possibility seems remote after statements from him and his aides that suggest an intention to keep the basic contours of the Iraq policy in place -- and possibly even raise the ante by sending more troops.The President is delusional. The response from top Democrats has been right on target. They're seeing a President who is not based in reality:
"There hasn't been a change from the president," observed Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), the incoming House majority leader. "The president may be trapped in his own policy, sensing, 'If I don't succeed, it will be a huge blot on my record, and so therefore I have no choice but to try to succeed.' "And the Democratic Congress shouldn't say it's okay. It's not:
Hoyer pointedly added: "I don't think the Democratic Congress is going to say, 'Well, that's okay.' "
Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.), chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said he could not think of anyone more "stubborn and isolated" than the president. "The American people have spoken, and voices inside and outside the national security apparatus . . . have all come to the conclusion: Doing more of the same and hoping for a different result is not going to be successful," Emanuel said.Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is insanity.
