Bush: War not going well

Despite the acknowledgment, Bush said victory 'is achievable.'
LOS ANGELES TIMES
WASHINGTON -- President Bush, saying he was still considering options for "a new way forward" in Iraq, delivered an uncharacteristically dour assessment Wednesday of the war there and called 2006 a "difficult year" in which extremists successfully thwarted efforts to establish security and stability in the country.
Appearing reflective in a year-end news conference, Bush said the optimism generated after Iraqis elected a new government last December had fallen away, as extremists undertook "a deliberate strategy to foment sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shia. And over the course of the year, they had success. Their success hurt our efforts to help the Iraqis rebuild their country."
With Bush reassessing his Iraq policy and expecting to announce changes early next month, his statements reflected a new willingness to acknowledge that the sectarian violence in Iraq has grown consistently worse and political cooperation there is flagging. He has come under intense pressure to change course in the war from Democrats, from the bipartisan Iraq Study Group and because of midterm elections that saw his party lose control of Congress.
Sticks to objective
Bush said he would work with Republicans and Democrats "and listen to ideas from every corridor" to redraw his approach. But the president also said he would not change his objective. "Our goal remains a free and democratic Iraq that can govern itself, sustain itself, and defend itself, and is an ally in this war on terror," he said.
Moreover, he said that U.S. troops remained in Iraq because they will be successful. "Victory in Iraq is achievable," he said. "It hasn't happened nearly as quickly as I hoped it would have. ... But I also don't believe most Americans want us just to get out now."
Bush said he would not adjust his Iraq policies until talking with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who was sworn in Monday and by Wednesday had landed in Baghdad to meet with U.S. commanders and others there. One option under consideration is a temporary increase in U.S. troop levels. Bush said such a surge was not certain, and that before he sends in additional troops, "there must be a specific mission that can be accomplished."
In Baghdad, Gates gave no hints as to what new strategy he preferred, but he acknowledged he and U.S. generals had discussed the possibility of a surge of U.S. forces into the Iraqi capital.
Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, who has been resistant to proposals to increase troop levels, appeared to qualify his objections after meeting with Gates. "I'm not necessarily opposed to the idea," he told a news conference.
"What I want to see happen is, if we do bring more American troops here, they help us progress toward our strategic objectives," Casey said.
Democrats' reactions
Bush's comments Wednesday did not satisfy senior Democratic leaders in Congress. In similar statements, Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic Senate leader, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, the incoming House speaker, said Bush did not understand the need for a more dramatic change in Iraq.
"The president seems lost within his own rhetoric," Reid said. "He is grasping for a victory his current policies have put out of reach and leaving our troops stuck policing a civil war." Reid, who has given qualified support to increasing troops in Iraq if it leads to Iraqis' picking up security responsibilities, also said that Bush should follow the course that Democrats and the Iraq Study Group recommended for withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., said on NBC's "Today Show" that her support for a temporary troop increase would depend on their mission.
"Everyone knows there is no military solution to the difficulties we face in Iraq," she said. "There has to be a broad-based, comprehensive approach that includes resolving some of the political issues, bringing the region together."