 |
|
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon With its colorful cache of purples and oranges and reds, COLLARD GREEN SLAW is a marvelous mood booster --- not to mention just downright delish
April 18, 2014
Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Clarifying one of the greatest philosophical conundrums in theology
John Ericson: Trying hard to be 'positive' but never succeeding? Blame Your Brain
The Kosher Gourmet by Julie Rothman Almondy, flourless torta del re (Italian king's cake), has royal roots, is simple to make, . . . but devour it because it's simply delicious
April 14, 2014
Rabbi Dr Naftali Brawer: Passover frees us from the tyranny of time
Eric Schulzke: First degree: How America really recovered from a murder epidemic
Georgia Lee: When love is not enough: Teaching your kids about the realities of adult relationships
Gordon Pape: How you can tell if your financial adviser is setting you up for potential ruin
Dana Dovey: Up to 500,000 people die each year from hepatitis C-related liver disease. New Treatment Has Over 90% Success Rate
Justin Caba: Eating Watermelon Can Help Control High Blood Pressure
April 11, 2014
Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Silence is much more than golden
Susan Swann: How to value a child for who he is, not just what he does
Susan Scutti: A Simple Blood Test Might Soon Diagnose Cancer
Chris Weller: Have A Slow Metabolism? Let Science Speed It Up For You
April 9, 2014
Jonathan Tobin: Why Did Kerry Lie About Israeli Blame?
Samuel G. Freedman: A resolution 70 years later for a father's unsettling legacy of ashes from Dachau
Jessica Ivins: A resolution 70 years later for a father's unsettling legacy of ashes from Dachau
Matthew Mientka: How Beans, Peas, And Chickpeas Cleanse Bad Cholesterol and Lowers Risk of Heart Disease
April 8, 2014
Dana Dovey: Coffee Drinkers Rejoice! Your Cup Of Joe Can Prevent Death From Liver Disease
Chris Weller: Electric 'Thinking Cap' Puts Your Brain Power Into High Gear
April 4, 2014
Amy Peterson: A life of love: How to build lasting relationships with your children
John Ericson: Older Women: Save Your Heart, Prevent Stroke Don't Drink Diet
John Ericson: Why 50 million Americans will still have spring allergies after taking meds
Sarah Boesveld: Teacher keeps promise to mail thousands of former students letters written by their past selves
April 2, 2014
Dan Barry: Should South Carolina Jews be forced to maintain this chimney built by Germans serving the Nazis?
Frank Clayton: Get happy: 20 scientifically proven happiness activities
Susan Scutti: It's Genetic! Obesity and the 'Carb Breakdown' Gene
|
| |
Jewish World Review
July 3, 2008
/ 30 Sivan 5768
President Bush: ‘Off the record’
By
Cal Thomas
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
It is a privilege to spend 90 minutes with the president of the United States. It is frustrating, though, when 90 percent of those minutes are declared off the record.
President Bush likes it that way, because he gets to speak "frankly" without worrying about how his remarks will be interpreted. Monday, in the on-the-record part of an interview with a small group of newspaper and magazine columnists, the president spoke of progress in Iraq: "I am pleased that the initial skepticism ... is beginning to fade, to the point where (the) king of Jordan is going to Iraq; Prime Minister Maliki is going to Abu Dhabi; ambassadors are soon to be exchanged, hopefully."
The president thinks his commitment to stabilizing Iraq has boosted confidence in other countries: "...the region is beginning to recognize, after a period of uncertainty, that a free Iraq is going to be important to their futures — economic future and political future, because a free and successful Iraq will end up serving as a pushback to Iranian movements in the Middle East."
He is clearly pleased that funding for the war, which congressional Democrats repeatedly tried to halt, has been approved and will last six months into the new administration, which will allow the next president time to assess progress and make his own decisions. He is equally pleased the House has passed legislation protecting private phone companies who aid the government in eavesdropping on calls to or from suspected terrorists overseas. "...a very important tool (in the war against terrorism) is to listen," he said. He called on the Senate to pass it "expeditiously."
| FREE SUBSCRIPTION TO INFLUENTIAL NEWSLETTER |
| Every weekday NewsAndOpinion.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". HUNDREDS of columnists and cartoonists regularly appear. Sign up for the daily update. It's free. Just click here. |
|
The president also reiterated his core philosophy since Sept. 11, 2001: "This is a war that requires the United States to not wait to get attacked, and therefore arrest people after the attack. It is a war that requires us to be proactive and to prevent attacks." While he refuses to discuss domestic politics, this sounded like a criticism of Barack Obama, who wants to negotiate with America's terrorist enemies and thinks the legal system can better handle terrorists after they have killed Americans.
Also on the record were the president's comments about the escalating cost of gasoline. In an apparent jab at Congress, whose Democratic leaders promised to do something about gas prices if given a majority, but have not, the president said, "I would ask people to look at the report Vice President Cheney did early on in this administration about our view of how we should have dealt with this problem in a comprehensive way." That report included references to the new technologies that allow for oil and gas exploration on American territory and offshore that minimize any threats to the environment.
The rest is conjecture and opinion based on impressions and not on what the president actually said.
While the war in Iraq is going better, the war in Afghanistan is not, causing more people to focus on the problem country rather than the better country. That is understandable to a point, but given the heat the president has taken over Iraq, one might expect him to get more credit now that things have substantially improved from where they were before the troop surge.
Some historians, most of whom are liberal, have already declared President Bush the worst president in history. We talked about this in previous meetings. He has said the worst time to judge a president is when he is in office and that perspectives often change years later when policies have had time to prove themselves (or not) and the political heat generated by partisanship has subsided.
This president still believes freedom can be established in the Arab and Muslim world. I am not as sure of this as he is, especially in nations that believe their brand of Islam is real freedom and our concept of freedom is a license for immoral behavior.
We will have to wait on the outcome to know if he's right. That outcome will most definitely be on the historical record for future generations to judge.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
| BUY THE BOOK |
|  Click HERE to purchase it at a discount. (Sales help fund JWR.). |
|
Cal Thomas Archives JWR contributor Cal Thomas is co-author with Bob Beckel, a liberal Democratic Party strategist, of "Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That is Destroying America". Comment by clicking here.
© 2006, Tribune Media Services, Inc.
|
|
Columnists
Toons
Lifestyles
|
