Bush to Defend Iraq Policy in Monday Night Speech
May 24, 2004 - 12:46pm -- jim
Bush to Defend Iraq Policy in Monday Night Speech
CBC News
WASHINGTON — Hoping to convince Americans that Iraq hasn't been a terrible mistake and that he has a workable plan for creating a democracy there, U.S. President George W. Bush begins a series of speeches on Monday.
Bush will speak Monday evening at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., knowing that he will be heard around the world.
The speech will lay out Bush's plan for the United States to be a "partner with the Iraqi people," said White House spokesman Scott Mclellan.
Bush won't set out a time for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, Mclellan said. Events in Iraq are "at a critical stage, and the stakes are high," he said.Washington plans to hand over sovereignty in Iraq to a new government on June 30. Bush is expected in his speech Monday to set out a timeline that extends to when elections are held, sometime next year.
The series of speeches begins amid increasing criticism of Bush's Iraq policies.
On Sunday, retired general Anthony Zinni appeared on U.S. television with harsh criticism. "At this level and at this stage it should be evident to everybody that they've screwed up," Zinni said on the CBS television show 60 Minutes.
Nearly 800 Americans have died in Iraq since the war began. U.S. troops continue to clash with insurgents in several areas of the country.
Criticism and calls to get out of Iraq are coming from Bush's own Republican party. Duncan Hunter, Republican chair of the House armed services committee, says a "modicum of freedom" for Iraq is good enough, that building a democracy might be too much.
"You can't teach responsibility, you've got to give it. So my recommendation to the administration is to make sure we make a military handoff and start putting some major responsibility on the Iraqi military forces," said Hunter.
White House officials say Bush will go beyond his standard "stay the course" rhetoric in the coming speeches, and discuss more details about his blueprint for Iraq.
Bush to Defend Iraq Policy in Monday Night Speech
CBC News
WASHINGTON — Hoping to convince Americans that Iraq hasn't been a terrible mistake and that he has a workable plan for creating a democracy there, U.S. President George W. Bush begins a series of speeches on Monday.
Bush will speak Monday evening at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., knowing that he will be heard around the world.
The speech will lay out Bush's plan for the United States to be a "partner with the Iraqi people," said White House spokesman Scott Mclellan.
Bush won't set out a time for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, Mclellan said. Events in Iraq are "at a critical stage, and the stakes are high," he said.Washington plans to hand over sovereignty in Iraq to a new government on June 30. Bush is expected in his speech Monday to set out a timeline that extends to when elections are held, sometime next year.
The series of speeches begins amid increasing criticism of Bush's Iraq policies.
On Sunday, retired general Anthony Zinni appeared on U.S. television with harsh criticism. "At this level and at this stage it should be evident to everybody that they've screwed up," Zinni said on the CBS television show 60 Minutes.
Nearly 800 Americans have died in Iraq since the war began. U.S. troops continue to clash with insurgents in several areas of the country.
Criticism and calls to get out of Iraq are coming from Bush's own Republican party. Duncan Hunter, Republican chair of the House armed services committee, says a "modicum of freedom" for Iraq is good enough, that building a democracy might be too much.
"You can't teach responsibility, you've got to give it. So my recommendation to the administration is to make sure we make a military handoff and start putting some major responsibility on the Iraqi military forces," said Hunter.
White House officials say Bush will go beyond his standard "stay the course" rhetoric in the coming speeches, and discuss more details about his blueprint for Iraq.