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Foolish

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On Labor Day, while all the candidates for the 2008 presidency were out speaking to union gatherings and holiday picnics throughout the US, non-candidate President Bush suddenly showed up in Iraq. Of course, he was only there for a couple of unannounced hours, under heavy guard, to make a couple of patriotic speeches and pose for photo ops surrounded by Marines and GIs. And then high-tail it back to the safety of Washington, DC.

To his admirers, his visit looked like a grand show of bravery to our troops and defiance to our enemies. For that short visit, it took considerable secret planning, assigning of sophisticated security measures and tough work for his crews both at home and in the combat areas. They had to consider the dangers, because it was just a week ago that a helicopter full of Congressmen was fired on by a missile as it flew over the Baghdad area.

However, to those who oppose the President and his current policies, some of the photo and video ops that came out of his quick visit to our troops in Iraq bring up eerily familar images. How many of us bitterly recall similar scenes of six years ago when he landed on an aircraft carrier. We saw him jump out of a Navy jet, stride along the flight deck all gussied up in combat pilot's gear, and arrogantly announce, "Mission accomplished!"

Was it worth the trouble and danger this time for the President to make such a trip to Iraq? He must be well aware of his declining support for the war as it is drags into year seven. He's not running for reelection, so we can only guess the reasons for his showing up in the war zone, something he failed to do as an Air Force combat pilot during the Vietnamese War.

As his term as President winds down, he may be trying to add something graphically positive to his legacy. His actions could also be intended to boost the sagging spirits of the Republican Party, as it struggles to remain competitive despite what seem to be never-ending scandals, and continuing failure of the announced Presidential candidates to ignite any semblance of voter interest.

This ploy by George W. Bush recalls something similar that was witnessed by this old Navy guy concerning another potential President who put on such an obvious act of foolish bravery. Our APA troopship disembarked GIs as they went ashore on the beaches of Leyte in the Philippines in November 1944. On a sister ship, the imperious boss of the invasion rode a landing craft in with the second wave, about an hour after the beach was secured.

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