by Robert C. Sage

Created on: September 28, 2007

Just another case of W's befuddled thinking. The best case scenario allowed him to grandstand in al-Anbar, but the worst case scenario would have given us a new president, Dick Cheney. Was the benefit of being able to brag to the Assistant Prime Minister of Australia that "We're kicking ass in Iraq" really worth the risk? Imagine the impact if his plane had been downed. It was a foolhardy act in a war zone. Within days, one of the Sunni Shieks who he met had been assassinated by al-Qaeda. How did that help Iraq?

G.W. Bush has a history of pursuing photo ops, regardless of the facts or pragmatism. Remember the "Mission Accomplished" sign and speech aboard the aircraft carrier? It turned out that not only was the mission not completed, but he had to escalate the conflict in order to complain he is making progress. Far more Americans and Iraqis have been killed after "Mission Accomplished" than before. It shows how focused he is on image over substance. Obviously, he wanted the mission to have been accomplished, but he jumped the gun, because years later, the mission is far from accomplished with no end in sight.

What could possibly be smart about putting the chief executive in profound danger? It didn't have any significant bearing on the war effort and there was nothing particularly significant about the timing, except that he was already scheduled to travel to Australia. It did highlight the fact that the American military is now cooperating with Sunni tribal leaders in the province, but that could have been accomplished without the risk. Apparently, Bush has a daredevil streak.

The other thing that the Bush visit to Iraq emphasized is that he did not trust Prime Minister al-Maliki enough to even hint that he might visit Iraq. That is a telling statement on their relationship, on the level of sectarian violence in Iraq and on the level of sovereignty exercised by the Iraqi government. Thus, the pluses of the visit do not overwhelm the minuses. In fact, some would argue that the minuses exceed the pluses. A huge risk was taken for a marginal benefit at best.

This action speaks volumes of George W. Bush. It indicates how concerned he is about his public image. It also shows that he is painfully aware of how strongly linked his legacy is with the war in Iraq. As Glen Beck stated on the Headline News channel, although referring to Iranian President Ahmedinejad: "If you repeat a lie often enough, some people will eventually believe you."

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