Cheney's Unforgivable Egotism

"Petraeus has offered no guarantee that conditions will allow further withdrawals before Bush leaves office. . . .

"After speaking with Petraeus and Crocker yesterday morning from the White House, Bush attended a briefing by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the State Department on cooperation between military and civilian officials in Iraq and elsewhere. In a statement to reporters, he spoke of the U.S. civilians who have died in Iraq and said: 'I will vow so long as I am president to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain.'"

Steven Lee Myers and Thom Shanker write in the New York Times that "it now appears likely that any decision on major reductions in American troops from Iraq will be left to the next president. That ensures that the question over what comes next will remain in the center of the presidential campaign through Election Day. . . .

"Mr. Bush, according to officials, could decide to make no further reductions in troops after the departure this summer of the last of the additional troops, leaving roughly 140,000. That number includes the 15 combat brigades in Iraq before the troop increase, as well as additional support, training and other units that are expected to stay. . . .

"[O]fficials said that Mr. Bush and General Petraeus, recognizing public and Congressional wariness about the toll of the war, would publicly hold out the possibly of withdrawing more troops, but only if conditions allowed it. Mr. Bush, in particular, is eager to end his presidency with the appearance that things are getting better in Iraq."

Here's Bush's statement yesterday, implicitly acknowledging, while at the same time diminishing, the day's milestone: "I'm fully aware that folks who have worked in the State Department lost their lives and -- in Iraq, along with our military folks. And on this day of reflection, I offer our deepest sympathies to their families. I hope their families know that the citizens pray for their comfort and strength, whether they were the first one who lost their life in Iraq or recently lost their lives in Iraq -- that every life is precious in our sight.

"And I guess my one thought I wanted to leave with those who still hurt is that one day people will look back at this moment in history and say, thank God there were courageous people willing to serve, because they laid the foundations for peace for generations to come; that I have vowed in the past, and I will vow so long as I'm President, to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain, that, in fact, there is a outcome that will merit the sacrifice that civilian and military alike have made; that our strategy going forward will be aimed at making sure that we achieve victory and, therefore, America becomes more secure and these young democracies survive, and peace more likely as we head into the 21st century."

Opinion Watch

A lot of folks are still marveling at Cheney's earlier interview with Raddatz.

Eugene Robinson writes in his Washington Post opinion column: "Dick Cheney, who in 2005 told us that the insurgency was ' in the last throes, if you will,' was asked last week about polls showing that two-thirds of Americans don't think the fight in Iraq is worth it. Cheney's response: 'So?'

"At least Cheney was being candid, if breathtakingly arrogant. He and George W. Bush have never cared what the American people think about this elective war. A little bamboozling was necessary at the beginning -- overblown claims about weapons of mass destruction, mushroom clouds and being 'greeted as liberators' by smiling Iraqi children. Once that hurdle was surmounted, and once Saddam Hussein's government had been destroyed, there was essentially nothing anyone could do to force the Bush administration to bring the war to an end."

The San Francisco Chronicle editorial board writes: "Barring a miracle, there is nothing to stop this total from hitting 4,500, 5,000 - or beyond. The White House curtly noted the latest milestone as 'a sober moment,' but there is no sign the president is changing his stubborn, fruitless direction. To him, and an ever-shrinking pack, this war is somehow winnable.

"Last week, as the body count climbed, a news interviewer asked Vice President Dick Cheney about polls showing two-thirds of Americans thought the war wasn't worth fighting. His answer: 'So?'