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Jan. 9, 2009

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Why there's hope amidst the destruction

Martin Peretz: At War, Not at War

Charles Krauthammer: Will Olmert screw it up yet again?

Jan. 8, 2009

Stratfor Geopolitical Intelligence Report: Arab regimes secretly rooting for Israel?

Larry Elder: Israelis and Palestinians: Who's David, Who's Goliath?

Jeff Jacoby: Yes, it's anti-Semitism

Jan. 7, 2009

Jonah Goldberg: Who are the real Nazis?

Anne Applebaum: Pointless Peace Proposals

Jan. 6, 2009

Caroline B. Glick: Iran's Gazan diversion?

Dennis Prager: Dissecting Dershowitz

Jan. 5, 2009

Mark Steyn: Gaza has its version of rocket scientists

Mona Charen: The So-called International Community

Jan. 2, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Having a holy tongue

Caroline B. Glick : Hamas' march to victory

Dec. 31, 2008

Dore Gold: Is Israel Using 'Disproportionate Force'?

Renee Enna:: Succulent 'stewp' is quick, easy fix

Dec. 30, 2008

Jonathan Mark: Israel's Response Is Disproportionate

Wesley Pruden: It's time once more to blame the Jews

Dec. 29, 2008

Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Chanukah: 'Give me Judaism or give me death'

Michael B. Oren: A crisis and an opportunity

Dec. 26, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: When the past meets the future

Caroline B. Glick: Iran and Hamas do Christmas

Dec. 24, 2008

Rabbi Dovid Zauderer: Judaism's Santa problem

The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman CHANUKAH FORK-FINGER FOOD FEAST

Dec. 23, 2008

Caroline B. Glick: Repeating failure in Gaza

Dec. 22, 2008

Rabbi Boruch Leff: Too many Jews today are missing the intended purpose of one of Judaism's most beloved holidays

Barry Rubin: Liar, liar, pants on cease-fire

Dec. 19, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Final Battlefield

Caroline B. Glick: Betting on a dead horse

Dec. 18, 2008

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky: Juicy Chef's hella top, hella bottom, hallelujah in the middle

Craig Crossman : More gifts for geeks --- and those who love them

Dec. 17, 2008

Dion Nissenbaum: Israel kicks out outrageously biased UN official

Craig Crossman : Gifts for geeks --- and those who love them

Dec. 16, 2008

Jonathan Rosenblum: The Gift of Joy

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Uncle Shariah

Dec. 15, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Expert witnesses who put themselves first

Barry Rubin: What they say isn't what you hear

Dec. 12, 2008

Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Can the Bible be a secular language?

Caroline B. Glick: What a PM Netanyahu faces from Washington

Dec. 11, 2008

Rabbi Leiby Burnham: Our role in the Divine's global corporation, World Inc.

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky: A retro-tasting pareve pot pie made with a light hand

Dec. 10, 2008

Rabbi Paysach J. Krohn: Groom admits he was caught "red handed"

Kara McGuire: No money for gifts? No problem

Dec. 9, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Can I make my boss treat me fairly?

Stratfor Geopolitical Intelligence Report: Next Steps in the Indo-Pakistani Crisis

Dec. 8, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: 'Chanukah Bush' flap and graciousness

Mark Steyn: Jews get killed, but Muslims feel vulnerable

Dec. 5, 2008

Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: Truth --- The Key to Gratitude

Jeff Jacoby: UN's obsession is grotesque and Orwellian

Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review Oct. 25, 2006 / 3 Mar-Cheshvan, 5767

Change the course

By Rich Lowry


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | President Bush's resolve is something to behold. One Bush aide tells a story of how when he left Texas to work for Bush in the White House after the 2000 election, a friend gave him a photograph of Lyndon Johnson visibly crushed at his desk, looking at casualty reports from Vietnam. The point was to remind this Bush adviser that the burdens of the office can break any man.


Six years into a turbulent presidency, Bush is determinedly un-crushed. Under the weight of a difficult war in Iraq, of regular meetings with families who have lost loved ones, of a hostile press and a vitriolic opposition, Bush has never given any indication of being run down. It is a testament to his physical and, above all, his spiritual strength.


The problem for Bush is that in the current environment, his resolve has become a drag. People hear him say that he will stay in Iraq even if only Laura and Barney still support him, and they think it signals a stubborn unwillingness to adjust. They hear him say that the next president will have to decide whether or not troops are in Iraq, and it sounds as if Bush's Iraq policy is on a mindless auto-pilot.


This is why the phrase "stay the course" has flipped in its political significance. It used to be the rallying cry of the war's supporters. Now, it is gleefully used by critics to discredit the war's supporters. Shrewd Republicans, including the president, have tried to get out from under the phrase by saying they want to "adapt to win." But "stay the course" is sticking, and to the extent that the election is a referendum on that position, Republicans will lose.


Not many people want to stay the course in Iraq, and why should they? The Baghdad security plan is faltering, the violence is intensifying and the Iraqi government is dithering. This is why the Democrats' nebulously defined call for changing the course in Iraq is so attractive. Even many hawks want to change the course (if in an entirely different way than the war's opponents). Bush cannot cede this ground to the Democrats.


He needs to give a "change the course" speech. He cannot give up on his essential goal of establishing a stable, democratic Iraq, but he needs to signal that the strategy in Iraq, the number of troops (we might need more), and all constructive ideas from Democrats or Republicans are on the table, because he is not happy with the progress there and he is working to find better approaches. Bush has given the impression of being detached from reality in Iraq, and that sense is simply deadly.


It seems clear already that Bush's Iraq policy will undergo adjustments, with leaks about setting benchmarks for Iraqi performance, with the Baker/Hamilton commission working on policy recommendations and with speculation that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will step down. It would be perverse for Bush to take the political hit from being associated with "staying the course" this November, when that isn't what he intends to do after the election.


For a president who talks so much about being a wartime leader and whose administration so emphasizes the prerogatives of the executive, Bush has been an oddly passive commander in chief. He often seems to be run by his government rather than the other way around. He rarely fires anyone. His deference to his generals is near total. He hasn't acted at key moments to resolve debilitating bureaucratic battles within his administration. He might be the "decider," but his deciding hasn't reached down far enough to see that his strategic decisions are effectively implemented.


There is a crisis in Iraq for all to see. Bush has to make it plain that he sees it too, and that his government is going to react to it. If he doesn't, his admirable resolve risks becoming a millstone around the neck of himself and his party.

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