Bush accepts Iraq-Vietnam war comparison
Bush accepts Iraq-Vietnam war comparison
The Guardian
The escalating violence in Iraq could be compared to the 1968 Tet offensive in Vietnam, which was a turning point in that war, the US president admitted last night.In an interview on ABC News, George Bush was asked whether he agreed with the New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, who wrote that the real "October surprise" was what "seems like the jihadist equivalent of the Tet offensive".
"He could be right," Mr Bush replied. "There's certainly a stepped-up level of violence, and we're heading into an election."
Mr Bush has strongly resisted comparisons between Vietnam and Iraq. Vietnam remains a touchy subject for America; the war deeply divided the country, ended in an ignominious retreat for the US after the loss of more than 57,000 American lives, and has become synonymous with political and military debacle.
The 1968 Tet offensive was a military failure for the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese, but it turned American public opinion against the war and fatally damaged President Lyndon Johnson, who abandoned his re-election campaign two months later.
The comparison with Vietnam coincided with one of the deadliest days in Iraq for the US military, with at least 10 soldiers killed yesterday. Around 70 US troops have died so far in October, making it one of the worst months for the American military since the invasion in March 2003.
"My gut tells me that they have all along been trying to inflict enough damage that we'd leave," Mr Bush told George Stephanopoulos of ABC News. "And the leaders of al-Qaida have made that very clear. They believe that if they can create enough chaos, the American people will grow sick and tired of the Iraqi effort and will cause (the) government to withdraw."
The Iraq war has turned into a major liability for Mr Bush and the Republicans. With just three weeks until the midterm elections, many expect the White House to lose control of the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate as well.
In a New York Times/CBS News poll taken from October 5 to October 8, two-thirds of respondents said they disapproved of Mr Bush's handling of the war and 66% said the war was going somewhat or very badly.
In the poll, 45% said the Democrats were more likely to make the right decision on Iraq, compared with 34% for the Republicans, despite the latter traditionally being identified as the most trustworthy on national security.
A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found that support for Congress had eroded to its lowest point since the "Republican revolution" of 1994 that gave the party control of Capitol Hill.
Voters' approval of Congress had fallen to 16% from 20% since early September, while their disapproval had risen to 75% from 65%, the poll showed.
The Republicans have been sliding in the polls not just because of Iraq but due to a spate of scandals, including the disclosure that Republican House leaders knew of inappropriate emails to House pages from the Florida Republican Mark Foley, who resigned late last month.
