Bush Reaction to Report Worries Father's Aides

Bush Reaction to Report Worries Father's Aides
By Kenneth T. Walsh
Fri Dec 8, 9:42 AM ET

Former White House advisers to George H.W. Bush are keenly disappointed and concerned about the current President Bush's initial reaction to the report by the Iraq Study Group.

They consider him rather dismissive of the group's conclusions, issued yesterday, which include the view that current Iraq policy is failing. The group recommends a variety of important changes, such as assigning U.S. troops to play more of an advisory and training role and less of a combat role. The ISG also recommends that the United States withdraw most of its combat brigades by early 2008 and that the administration increase diplomatic efforts, including starting talks with Iran and Syria and energetically working toward an Israeli-Palestinian solution.

Adding to the unease were President Bush's comments at his Thursday news conference with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, in which he avoided commenting on specifics in the ISG report.

"We have a classic case of circling the wagons," says a former adviser to Bush the elder. "If President Bush changes his policy in Iraq in a fundamental way, it undermines the whole premise of his presidency. I just don't believe he will ever do that."

White House advisers say Bush won't react in detail to the ISG report for several weeks, while he assesses it and awaits various internal government reports on the situation from his own advisers. Bush tells aides he doesn't want to "outsource" his role as commander in chief. Some Bush allies say this is a way to buy some time as the president tries to decide how to deal with rising pressure to alter his strategy in Iraq and hopes the critical media focus on the Iraq war will soften.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnews/20061208/ts_usnews/bushreactiontoreportworriesfathersaides

Bush rejects Iraq report's key proposals, unveils Mideast initiative


by Olivier Knox
Thu Dec 7, 11:49 PM ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President George W. Bush rebuffed key recommendations
from the Iraq Study Group but announced a new Middle East peace push after talks
with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

A day after receiving the heavyweight US commission's report on Iraq, Bush said that
Blair would soon travel to the region for talks with Israel and the Palestinians, and
promised "concerted efforts to advance the cause of peace."

-snip-

Bush, giving a cool reception to two key proposals by the Iraq Study Group, kept tight
conditions on any talks with Iran and Syria and refused to endorse the panel's call
for withdrawing most US combat troops by early 2008.

"I've always said we'd like our troops out as fast as possible," he said, while insisting
on the need to be "flexible and realistic" and tying any change in troop level to advice
from US military commanders, as he has in the past.

-snip-