Fool Me Once

"Officials at the National Governors Association . . . said they are not clear why the administration is balking at this simple solution. McClellan told me in an interview that 'we're meeting all the needs' with the waiver approach. But with evacuees spread among all the states, it's hard to believe that's true."

Cindy Sheehan Watch

Petula Dvorak and Fredrick Kunkle write in The Washington Post: "Three weeks after leaving their dusty outpost in Crawford, Tex., and touring the country, several dozen families brought their antiwar message to the U.S. Capitol and the White House. They plan to join thousands of protesters Saturday at a march and rally on the Mall. . . .

"The 'Bring Them Home Now' bus tour was born at Camp Casey, the makeshift encampment that blossomed around Cindy Sheehan when she decided to plant herself outside President Bush's ranch and demand that he talk with her about why her son, Army Spec. Casey Sheehan, 24, was killed. He died April 4, 2004, in Baghdad."

Dana Milbank and Chris Cillizza write in The Washington Post that Sheehan arrived "just in time for the launch of a $1 million advertising campaign sponsored by Gold Star Families For Peace, an antiwar group that she co-founded.

"In the television spot, three women recount their loss before asking a handful of pointed questions of Bush. 'How many more soldiers have to die for your mistake?' asks one."

Bush, for his part, yesterday proclaimed Sunday, the day after the antiwar rally, as "Gold Star Mother's Day."

"On Gold Star Mother's Day, we recognize and pray for the devoted and patriotic mothers of these men and women in uniform who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our liberty. . . .

"I call upon all Government officials to display the flag of the United States over Government buildings on this solemn day. I also encourage the American people to display the flag and hold appropriate ceremonies as a public expression of our Nation's sympathy and respect for our Gold Star Mothers."

The Vietnam Parallel

Douglass K. Daniel writes for the Associated Press: "Bush officials bristle at the suggestion the war in Iraq might look anything like Vietnam. Yet just as today's anti-war protests recall memories of yesteryear, President Bush's own words echo those of President Johnson in 1967, a pivotal year for the U.S. in Vietnam."

An example:

" 'Be assured that the death of your son will have meaning,' Johnson told the parents of a posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor during a Rose Garden ceremony on April 6, 1967. 'For I give you also my solemn pledge that our country will persist -- and will prevail -- in the cause for which your boy died.'

"Speaking to military families in Idaho on Aug. 24, Bush said: 'These brave men and women gave their lives for a cause that is just and necessary for the security of our country, and now we will honor their sacrifice by completing their mission.' "