Bush's Feeble Torture Dodge

"Iraqi leaders argue that sectarian animosity is entrenched in the structure of their government. Instead of reconciliation, they now stress alternative and perhaps more attainable goals: streamlining the government bureaucracy, placing experienced technocrats in positions of authority and improving the dismal record of providing basic services."

Since national reconciliation is Bush's avowed goal in Iraq, that puts him in a bit of a bind. And there's more.

Jane Perlez writes in the New York Times: "Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the House of Commons on Monday that he would remove half of the 5,000 British troops in Iraq by next spring, and left open the strong possibility that all British soldiers would leave Iraq by the end of 2008. . . .

"Since President Bush has made clear that American troops will remain heavily committed in Iraq at least through his administration's end in January 2009, it appears that the tight alliance on Iraq forged between Mr. Brown's predecessor, Tony Blair, and Washington is fraying. Indeed, a hallmark of Mr. Brown's three months as prime minister has been the relative distance he has established with the American president."

The Los Angeles Times editorial board writes: "The 'coalition of the willing' is over. One by one, its members have ceded the bloodstained ground to the battling Iraqis and the unyielding U.S. president. . . .

"The United States should take note and recognize that it is a delusion to believe that any foreign occupier can stop Iraqi factions hellbent on fighting for power. We owe the Iraqis our best efforts at mediation, but to insist on stability as a prerequisite for withdrawal is to commit to indefinite and fruitless military occupation."

What Troop Reduction?

CNN's Jamie McIntyre reports that, despite Bush's promise last month, there's no sign of any troops coming home because of the surge's success.

Blackwater Watch

Steven R. Hurst and Qassim Abdul-Zahra write for the Associated Press: "Iraqi authorities want the U.S. government to sever all contracts in Iraq with Blackwater USA within six months. They also want the firm to pay $8 million in compensation to families of each of the 17 people killed when its guards sprayed a traffic circle with heavy machine gun fire last month.

"The demands -- part of an Iraqi government report examined by The Associated Press -- also called on U.S. authorities to hand over the Blackwater security agents involved in the Sept. 16 shootings to face possible trial in Iraqi courts.

"The tone of the Iraqi report appears to signal further strains between the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the White House over the deaths in Nisoor Square -- which have prompted a series of U.S. and Iraqi probes and raised questions over the use of private security contractors to guard U.S. diplomats and other officials."

Bush's Interview

Bush spent almost an hour on Friday with Elie Nakozi, an anchor for Al Arabiya ("we're not Al Jazeera") television. Here's the transcript. Nakozi scaled new heights of reportorial sycophancy -- even as he popped in a few tough questions.

Consider the opening:

Nakozi: "Actually, I want to tell the people of the Middle East that this is the place where big decisions are made. This is the office. But here it comes to my mind that how hard it is on you, Mr. President, to take like -- a big decision like war, for example."

Soon after:

Nakozi: "But I want to tell you -- and I hope this doesn't bother you at all -- that in the Islamic world they think that President Bush is an enemy of Islam --

Bush: "Sure."

Nakozi: "-- that he wants to destroy their religion, what they believe in. Is that in any way true, Mr. President?"

Bush: "No, it's not. I've heard that, and it just shows [sic] to show a couple of things: One, that the radicals have done a good job of propagandizing. In other words, they've spread the word that this really isn't peaceful people versus radical people or terrorists, this is really about the America not liking Islam."

Bush the controversial theologian was also on display: "Well, first of all, I believe in an almighty God, and I believe that all the world, whether they be Muslim, Christian, or any other religion, prays to the same God. That's what I believe. I believe that Islam is a great religion that preaches peace."

Nakozi repeatedly asked Bush about Iran: "Mr. President, have you made the decision to strike Iran, as some are saying, or trying to say that you will not leave your administration and office before you strike Iran militarily?" And then later, after a nonanswer: "[I]s it true that you have issued orders, Mr. President, to your senior generals in the American military to prepare for a major and precise strike that could happen during the end of January or February?"

Bush replied: "I would call that empty propaganda. Evidently there's a lot of gossip in parts of the country, world, that try to scare people about me, personally, or my country, or what we stand for. And that kind of gossip is just what it is -- it's gossip, it's baseless gossip."

So, no actual orders have been issued, apparently. But beyond that, who knows?

And here's a fascinating exchange. Raising the issue of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Nakozi asked: "I would like to know what was your reaction the first time when you heard that 15 Saudi Muslims were among the hijackers who committed this crime and this terrorist act. How did that affect your relationship with the Kingdom, which plays a major role in the region and particularly Crown Prince Abdullah -- now King Abdullah -- who is a personal friend of yours?"

Bush: "King Abdullah is a personal friend of mine, and I respect him. You know, I have seen murder before in my own country. I have seen evil people take innocent life. And when that's happened, I haven't condemned everybody else around. . . .

"In other words, my first reaction was not, look, the Saudis are bad people. My first reaction was, evil people came and killed, and we'll react to protect ourselves."

By attacking Iraq.

The Departed

Peter Baker writes in Sunday's Washington Post about the "parade of longtime aides who have headed for the door in recent months exhausted, sometimes discouraged and wrestling with the legacy of their experience. Karl Rove feels guilty for leaving in a time of war, yet he wants to reinvent himself as more than simply 'the Bush guy.' Peter H. Wehner rues lost friendships with those estranged by the war. Dan Bartlett is relieved to shed the burden of worrying that any day could bring another terrorist attack. . . .

"The long-term ideals that many of them came to the White House to pursue appear jeopardized, even discredited to many. They tell themselves that they have acted on principle, that the decisions they helped make will be vindicated. But they cannot be sure. . . .

"One former senior official said nearly everyone who has left the administration is angry in some way or another -- at the president for making bad decisions, at his staff for misguiding him, at events that have spiraled out of control. Others called that an exaggeration."

As for Rove: He "keeps a newspaper picture of I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby and his wife on the day Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the CIA leak case. Rove says he holds onto it to remember. 'I'm really sad about Scooter,' he said. Although he does not say it, the picture may also be a reminder of what he avoided."

What's next for Bush's political guru? "Rove already has multiple options. While on the phone from Dallas before a meeting on the future Bush library, he excused himself to answer a knock at the hotel door. A package arrived and he ripped it open. 'I sign it and suddenly I'm a lot richer,' he said with Rovian mirth. What kind of contract, he would not say."

Baker adds: "At the end of the interview, he asked that his quotes be sent to the White House first. 'I'm still a cog in the great machine,' he explained.

"But even the cog does not want to be identified solely by his ties to the president. He knows he will go down in history as Bush's 'architect,' but he thinks he can expand his identity beyond just that. 'It's not like my life from here forward is going to be defined by it,' he said. 'I have a chance to create something else. I'm not just going to be typecast as, "Oh, that's the Bush guy."'"

Rove's Assistant

And Baker writes in yesterday's Post: "The revolving door at the White House continues with the departure of J. Scott Jennings, who is following his mentor and former boss, Karl Rove, out of the fishbowl. . . .

"Jennings was well regarded within the White House but came under fire for delivering private PowerPoint briefings on Republican election prospects at federal agencies where partisan activities are highly restricted. . . .

"Democratic lawmakers are investigating, but the White House defends its actions as completely legal. The Jennings briefings, it has said, were simply informational presentations to other political appointees.

"Congressional investigators have also sought Jennings's testimony on the firings of U.S. attorneys stemming from his involvement in the appointment of another former Rove aide, Tim Griffin, to replace Bud Cummins as U.S. attorney in Arkansas. Jennings's use of a Republican National Committee e-mail account to discuss the appointment has also drawn scrutiny. He cited executive privilege in declining to answer questions before a Senate committee in August."

No worries, though: "Rove and others see Jennings as an up-and-comer."

Leakers

Joby Warrick writes in The Washington Post: "A small private intelligence company that monitors Islamic terrorist groups obtained a new Osama bin Laden video ahead of its official release last month, and around 10 a.m. on Sept. 7, it notified the Bush administration of its secret acquisition. It gave two senior officials access on the condition that the officials not reveal they had it until the al-Qaeda release."

Those two officials: White House counsel Fred F. Fielding and Michael Leiter, who holds the No. 2 job at the National Counterterrorism Center.

"Within 20 minutes, a range of intelligence agencies had begun downloading it from the company's Web site. By midafternoon that day, the video and a transcript of its audio track had been leaked from within the Bush administration to cable television news and broadcast worldwide.

"The founder of the company, the SITE Intelligence Group, says this premature disclosure tipped al-Qaeda to a security breach and destroyed a years-long surveillance operation that the company has used to intercept and pass along secret messages, videos and advance warnings of suicide bombings from the terrorist group's communications network."

Poll Watch

Gallup reports: "According to a new Gallup Poll, conducted Oct. 4-7, 2007, President George W. Bush's job approval rating from the American public is an anemic 32%. That is slightly below his previous reading of 36% from mid-September, but is identical to his average approval score for all Gallup Polls conducted thus far in the second half of the year."

Send out the F-16s

Susan Kinzie writes in The Washington Post about how several antique plane enthusiasts at the annual Hagerstown Fly-In were "escorted out of the area by F-16s" after crossing into a temporary no-fly zone protecting the president.

Glad That's Settled

Here's a headline from a Society of Professional Journalists' convention news release: White House press reporters debunk lap dog myth.

Cartoon Watch

Mike Luckovich, Tony Auth, Lalo Alcaraz and Ben Sargent on SCHIP. David Horsey on Cheney's math. Auth on Bush's next theater of operations. Tom Toles on the Bush legacy.

Late Night Humor

Conan O'Brien via U.S. News: "During a recent speech, President Bush said, this is a quote, 'My job is a decision-making job. As a result, I have made a lot of decisions.' Apparently, Bush's decision that day was to write his own speech."