As the old saying goes, the first casualty of war is truth.
It was bound to happen.
The chamber of horrors that much of the Middle East has become is now being exploited for political purposes. Call this grotesque disinformation campaign what it is — historical revisionism. This mass deception is right up there with wacko 9/11 conspiracy theories and holocaust denial. As the saying goes, the first casualty of war is truth.
Hard to believe, but many conservative pundits are now saying that George W. Bush was “right” about things over there. They insist, the former president “warned us” of the dangers of what would happen if American military ground forces departed the region “too soon.” Actually, this is nothing more than retreaded neo-conservatism. Yet another labyrinth of lies from the same bunch who asserted the existence of weapons of mass destruction and then labeled any questioning or criticism as traitorous.
Have they no shame? Won’t they ever take any responsibility? Didn’t these neoconservatives do enough damage already? Now, they expect us to ignore history and to really take them seriously?
According to their crackpot world view, the Obama Administration “made things much worse” in the Middle East for just about everyone. These screwballs claim that a rudderless American foreign policy created the chaos that we now see unfolding in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and Syria.
What a load of crap.
Have they forgotten that 130 Americans and 5,000 Iraqis were dying every month at the height of the Iraqi War which was the summer of 2007 when President Bush was in the midst of his second term? This twisted fantasy that the Middle East, was better off back then versus now is not only absurd but dangerous. It implies the best strategy to improve the situation in the Middle East is through increased American intervention — which means more ground wars, an endless occupation, and yet more wasted lives and trillions from the national treasury. That’s essentially the neoconservative game plan — more wars (and war profits).
Let’s take a look at what really contributed to the mayhem of the Middle East at the moment, particularly in Iraq and with the emergence of the Islamic State.
FACT: De-Bathification in Iraq proved disastrous and contributed immensely to Iraq’s deteriorating security situation and the escalation of violent militant opposition — The very first executive order from the Provisional Authority, dictated directly by President Bush and Sec. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was the immediate removal of all former Bath Party members from all positions in civil service. Tens of thousands of ordinary Iraqis — including policemen, firefighters, teachers, utility workers, petty bureaucrats, and all the other middle-class workers that are essential in a functioning society — were thrown out of work. This executive order not only destabilized the country’s infrastructure, it also alienated a key element of the local population which could have been used to rebuild the country and restore civil order. Banned from working within the new government, and without jobs, many of these outcasts gravitated to the opposition and joined the insurgency. The idiocy of this directive from the Bush Administration cannot be overstated enough. Read more here: WHAT WAS DE-BATHIFICATION?
FACT: The decision to disband the Iraqi military forces proved to be even more disastrous — It’s hard to imagine a more reckless policy from so-called “experts” in foreign policy and military affairs than tossing all government employees out of work and then expecting the country to function. But what happened next took American incompetence to a new low. While many within the Pentagon and the intelligence community quietly warned the Bush Administration dissolving the Iraqi military would pose serious consequences, President Bush and Sec. Rumsfeld thought they knew more than everyone else. Aided by toxic advice from the likes of Vice President Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz (a leading neoconservative who was called the “architect” of the Iraq War), CPA Executive Order Number Two was the complete disbandment of the entire Iraqi armed forces. Seriously, what did our “experts” think would happen when 600,000 mostly young men who were armed and trained in bomb-making and other military tactics were let go and turned loose in Iraqi society? Moreover, when the Iraqi armed forces were dissolved, most soldiers took their guns and ammo with them. Out of work, with no means of support, unable to fit into the new Iraqi society, where do you think most of these militants later turned up? Fact is, these are many of the same “terrorists” who have created the insurgency and who now make up what’s known as ISIS. Read more here: WHAT DISBANDING THE IRAQI MILITARY MEANT
FACT: “Mission Accomplished” demonstrated a complete lack of understanding of the situation in Iraq — President Bush’s now embarrassing “mission accomplished” speech delivered on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln took his Administration’s level of incompetence even further down the scale of shame. What was he thinking? Did President Bush and his political cronies really believe the Iraq War was over? Actually, the vast majority of casualties on both sides took place long after the “mission accomplished” speech. The image of President Bush standing on the deck of a ship with the “Mission Accomplished” banner plastered behind him became a symbol of his total mishandling of the war and complete lack of understanding about the history and culture of the Middle East. Read more here: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED SPEECH
FACT: The key people placed in charge of creating a new Iraq were idiots — It all started with the bizarre selection of a former Henry Kissinger flunky named L. Paul Bremer. He was hand-picked by President Bush to head the Provisional Authority, which basically made him the temporary ruler of Iraq during the most critical phase of the transition. What were Bremer’s qualifications? Well, for one thing, he did not speak Arabic. He had little first-hand experience in the Middle East. And according to a recent PBS Frontline expose, he even had to undergo a two-week “crash course” on Iraq just prior to his deployment back in 2003. Yeah, a crash course….as in training wheels. Supposedly, sole qualification stemmed from being the managing director of a whoring consulting company for hire run by Kissinger (who took millions from the Chinese Government as a “consultant”). This was the buffoon selected to run Iraq! Of course, the foreseeable happened — disaster. One failure after another led to his departure 18 months later, and by that time Iraq was in the midst of civil war and thousands were dying. Read more here: L. PAUL BREMER
FACT: The Bush Administration didn’t simply misjudge the cost of the Iraq War, they even lied about it — The Iraqi War cost us trillions. It was paid for by American tax dollars on the backs of the middle class. We still don’t know the total financial cost of the war, occupation, and painful aftermath — which includes caring for veterans for several decades. For what? Why such tremendous sacrifices? What was accomplished? Rather than admit they totally misjudged Iraq in every way conceivable, former Bush Administration officials continue to openly lie and deceive the media and public. One of many downright fabrications was the claim that Iraqi oil reserves would be used to pay the cost of the war and reconstruction. However, Karl Rove, the politically poisonous pundit without any sense of shame, denies such a claim was ever made. Trouble for him is — the evidence is all over the place. Consider this: “Days after the U.S. invasion, then-Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told a congressional panel that Iraqi oil revenues would help pay for reconstructing the country, i.e. a cost of the war. ‘The oil revenue of that country could bring between 50 and 100 billion dollars over the course of the next two or three years. We’re dealing with a country that could really finance its own reconstruction, and relatively soon,’ he said.” Read more here: ROVE AND WOLFOWITZ ARE LIARS
So, who created ISIS? Try this — President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Sec. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Advisor Paul Wolfowitz. They’re the architects of the Iraqi disaster. The real absurdity is they’re still out there giving speeches, appearing on talk shows and news programs, and being touted as experts on the Middle East. Applauded in public. Taken seriously as guests. As though their opinions mean something. But just look at their track record.
When added to the deliberate lies and gross incompetence that took place before the Iraq War — including the repeated insistence of non-existent weapons of mass destruction and the intentional conflating of 9/11 attacks with “going after terrorist training sites in Iraq” (which never existed), the comprehensive record of failures of the Bush Administration is the costliest and potentially most damaging to this nation’s security of any presidency in history.
Anyone who thinks “President Bush was right” about the Middle East is delusional. The facts clearly show he and his followers were wrong on just about everything. Sadly, we are still paying a costly price for his mistakes.