White House Tries to Limit Iraq Damage

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration is reaching out to its Republican allies in Congress in an effort to counter criticism of President Bush's Iraq policy and his use of discredited intelligence to advance the case for toppling Saddam Hussein.

With Bush's job approval ratings slipping, and U.S. casualties in Iraq continuing to climb, the White House is in full damage-control mode, trying to reframe the debate over the Iraq war away from the flap over Bush's assertion in his State of the Union address that Iraq was trying to buy uranium in Africa.

On Monday, White House Communications Director Dan Bartlett went to Capitol Hill to urge Republicans to emphasize positive aspects of the broader war against terrorism, administration and congressional officials said.

SNIP

A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Monday that Bartlett's trip to Capitol Hill was an attempt to touch base with congressional allies on the subject and go over what the administration views as ``misinformation.''

More on the spin to be expected: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-2935834,00.html

What exactly is positive about death and destruction contributing to more death and destruction???

Sure, they will say Saddam is gone. Yeah?!? gone where?!? Like Osama is gone? Saddam killed a lot of people they say,I am willing to bet this invasion has killed many more than Saddam ever did. This whole fucking quagmire we are in SUCKS big time no matter how that want to spin it. Sheesh they can't even suck out that oil they want so bad....spin away you murderers...

We know Saddam existed so therefore WMD's must have existed.

TODAY'S letter to the editor....

http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?Category=7&ID=111556&r=3
‘Hidden’ does not equal ‘nonexistent’
Tuesday, July 22, 2003

Do you believe that Osama bin Laden is still alive? If he can’t be found, does that prove anything?

Do you believe that Saddam Hussein is still alive? If he can’t be found, does that prove anything?

Do you believe that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction? If they can’t be found, does that prove anything?

Then why does political clamor resonate that not finding WMD is proof they don’t exist?

HARRY KYRAN PERRY
EAST ROCHESTER

People just have too hard a time admitting they're wrong.

am I to assume that nobody can prove me wrong if I say there are gnomes and faeries in my gardens? I mean, I know in my heart they must be there, and just because a thorough search of my property doesn't reveal them doesn't prove they aren't hiding someplace.

However when he established his power base most of not all of the killings were done by others below him.

Just my opinion but I believe he was the average middle eastern leader who had a power base that used fear and violence to retain order. Remember the US was his buddy. Maybe the reason the best friends thing didn't work out is because he would not allow private oil companies free access to the reserves?

were getting the big contracts. 9/11 was our big chance to jump in there and secure our energy future.

Just about as transparent as it can be, and supported by numerous statements and docs.

And welcome to DU.

That's the difference between Iraq and Liberia. Saddam wouldn't give the US free access to his oil fields, while Taylor's door is wide open. Thanks to Taylor, al Qaeda was well funded and Taylor's rebels bought plenty of arms in return.

At least Dubya's reign may add new words to the English language.

"White House Tries to Limit Iraq Damage" Nice, that is, if they'd tried to limit the damage they did to Iraq. Here's a thought! The best way to 'limit damage' to a country is to NOT BOMB IT.

Gee, not bomb the bejesus out of the country as a way of limiting damage? Actually have a plan and and a strategy besides the bump in the poll numbers? Conduct the affairs of government in a way that does credit to the nation and its people?

Naahhhhhh!

I notice with some amusement that this corrupt administration is reaching out to Republicans only in its attempt to look less like a murderous bunch of thugs. There's our answer: Yes, it is right and proper to be running ads against this arrogant usurper and his cadre of lackeys.

they really don't care about the 20K and counting Iraqis who died. Why should they?

using the exact wording: "Broader aspect" which is simply a variation on the "ends-justify-the-means" excuse.

They could bring up those mass graves again, just so long as no-one notices that they are full of dead Shi'ites who were betrayed by the Elected George Bush whop promised US backing if they rose up against Saddam Hussein.

but these unfortunate victims were, after all, acting in a revolution against the government. that makes them traitors. Wasn't it Ann Coulter who called liberals traitors and said that traitors should be killed?

The unfortunate victims in those mass graves were casualties of war. Maybe it makes it all better if war dead are buried in individual graves, I don't know. But the phrase mass graves invokes images of piles of innocent jews murdered by the nazis. I wonder if that could be deliberate, sort of like using the words September 11 and Saddam in the same sentence over and over, but never actually saying that the two are connected....nah. Couldn't be. Could it?

oh, they're talking about Dems again? Never mind, same old sh*t.

Cut in AIDS spending proposal
Insufficient funding for Homeland Security
No control over spending in general

Now they want them to cover their a**.

try some bleach. :)

Dubya could drag the GOP congressional majorities down with him. The public is starting to get rather upset with Dubya. It could get quite dangerous for Repub pols in the Congress to support him.

Dubya could drag the GOP congressional majorities down with him. The public is starting to get rather upset with Dubya. It could get quite dangerous for Repub pols in the Congress to support him.

and now he's trying to change everything back to how it was before it all went to hell. It won't happen.

They should know better!

I heard some bloated right wing congressman defending this thing on NPR this morning on the basis of the mass graves. Some other fat fuck republican congressman was holding up a magazine clipping picture of the gassed Kurds last night on cable. They are looking pathetic, I laugh.

If it is boiling down to that, then there are lots of other dictators we need to take out.

intended to "inform the public" of the sensible direction of thought.

The sense and logic of all these arguments can be deconstructed in seconds if you think about it, but they depend on the fact that you NOT in fact, think.

Remember that this is simply a lawless wildwest shoot'n match and there are no rules anymore. No logic applies here. Lies are allowed and should be expected at anytime.