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"And they will look back and they will say, 'Thank God that America stayed the course.'"

By AcademicElephant Posted in War — Comments (8) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

In the fourth speech of the week, Secretary Rice made remarks to the American Legion. Judging from the hysterical Democrat response, Mr. Rumsfeld was clearly playing bad cop in the morning, softening up the territory as it were for Dr. Rice in the afternoon. As always, they co-ordinated very well, and for anyone listening the joint speeches worked extremely well together.

Read on...

Secretary Rice's remarks began on a deliberately gentler tone, as she discussed her visit with the women of the American Legion Auxilliary, from whom she had earlier received their Woman of the Year award, but she quickly turned tough as she addressed to the Global War on Terror. Her focus was why we have elected to fight in Iraq. She began:

But if you believe, as I do, and as President Bush does, that the root cause of September 11th was the violent expression of a global extremist ideology, an ideology that thrives on the oppression and despair of the Middle East, then we must seek to remove this source of terror by helping the people of that troubled region to transform their countries and to transform their lives.

We must be very clear about this broader struggle: Yes, it is a war, but a war of completely new and different dimensions. It is a struggle between the vast majority of moderate Muslims, who desire peace and freedom from oppression, and a small minority of violent extremists that will do whatever it takes to further their ideology of hatred and injustice.

The dream of some, that we could avoid this conflict, that we did not have to take sides in this battle in the Middle East, that dream was demolished on September the 11th. For as we learned on that fateful day, America's stake in this struggle is very clear: The security of our citizens is inextricably linked to the success of freedom and moderation and, yes, democracy in the Middle East.

She pointed to the very real progress that has been made in this fight, which is all to often now taken for granted:

Five years ago, who could have imagined that a vibrant debate about democratic reform and economic reform and social reform would be raging in every country of the Broader Middle East, a debate not about whether to proceed with reform, but how to proceed? Who could have imagined the positive changes we have already witnessed in places as different as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait and Morocco, and Jordan? Sure, there have been many setbacks and step backs in each of these cases, but the steps forward are also taking place.

And who could have imagined that the people of Lebanon would stand up by the hundreds of thousands and call for the Syrian occupation of their country to end and for a new democratic future to begin? And of course, who could have imagined that the people of Iraq and Afghanistan, after years of tyranny and misery, would turn out by the millions to make their voices heard and to vote for a better life?

These events were remarkable. And they were setbacks for the forces of extremism in the Middle East. But the elections of the previous years only marked the beginnings of a journey to democracy, not its completion.

Advancing the work of democracy, the daily effort to build effective institutions through which all of a country's citizens can experience justice and exercise power equally, this is a longer and far harder process. And it is made even more difficult because the moderate citizens of the Middle East face violent enemies who are determined to reverse the gains of democracy.

I think the invocation of Lebanon is important here--some might expect the Secretary to avoid mentioning what they consider to be a democratic disappointment. But she took this as an opportunity to emphasize our ongoing support for Lebanon's democracy as it struggles through this difficult period. She then asked some tough (rhetorical) questions about Iraq:

But on the other hand, there are unsettling questions. Is success possible? Is it really worth the effort? Do the Iraqi people really want to live together in peace and freedom, the peace and freedom for which our troops have sacrificed so much. Or do they desire a darker path, somehow, of violence?

Her answer:

When you speak with our fellow citizens who are serving in Iraq and when you ask them why they fight, why they are optimistic and inspired to conduct their mission, I am sure that most of them give you the same answer that I hear from troops when I speak to them, and from members of our diplomatic corps, and other civilians who are there risking their lives in Iraq. Most of these men and women say that what motivates them to do their job every day is the overwhelming hope that they witness in the Iraqi people and the tremendous sacrifices that Iraqis themselves are bearing to realize that hope.

Most Iraqis want what all people want. They want freedom from coercion and oppression, safety from violence and injustice, opportunities for a better life for themselves and for their children. They what a future of peace and moderation for their country, as do the leaders they freely elected in December, who are now serving at great personal risk in Iraq's national unity government.

Dr. Rice continued with a discussion of how we will pursue victory in Iraq, and warned of the dangers of cutting and running:

Now in Iraq, we are helping them with a strategy of "clear, hold, and build." It means that with Iraqi forces in the lead and with our strong support, areas are cleared from terrorists and militia control. And this difficult, yet promising work that you are witnessing in Baghdad right now is a part of that effort.

Second, we are helping the Iraqi government to hold the areas we have cleared together; most importantly, by supporting Prime Minister Al-Maliki's plan for national reconciliation. That plan got a significant boost over the weekend when 100 of Iraq's tribal leaders signed a "pact of honor," declaring that they would do what they could to stop the sectarian killings that have plagued Iraq.

Finally, we are helping the government and the people of Iraq to rebuild their country. The keystone of this effort is a compact which will rally new international support for Iraqi reconstruction as the Iraqi government proceeds with democratic and political reform.

Ladies and gentlemen, this strategy can succeed and it will succeed, but if we quit before the job is done, the cost of failure will be severe; indeed, immeasurable. If we abandon the Iraqi people, before their government is strong enough to secure the country, then we will show reformers across the region that America cannot be trusted to keep its word. We will embolden extremist enemies of moderation and of democratic reform. We will leave the makings of a failed state in Iraq, like that one in Afghanistan in the 1990s, which became the base for al-Qaida and the launching pad for the September 11th hijackers. And we should not assume for one minute that those terrorists will not continue to come after the American homeland. That is why President Bush calls Iraq a central front in the war on terror.

In conclusion, the Secretary invoked, as Mr. Rumsfeld had before her, the long road to the victory over Communism in the Cold War. She pointed out that she had been part of the first Bush administration during the final period of victory, and noted that at times in that conflict, eventual victory was very hard to envision:

Who would have thought in 1946 or 1947, or 1948 or 1949, or 1950 that by 1991, we would be celebrating the victory of free men and women over communism? But indeed, we were and it was because of the steadfastness and the commitment of America, of our men and women in uniform, of our leaders, and indeed of the American people to a cause greater than ourselves. Because we knew that only when the world was freer would America be so secure. Now, no one can imagine war again in Europe, and no one imagines war against Japan or in Asia, but in 1949, it didn't seem that way.

I submit to you that if we stay strong, if we stay committed, if we remain true to our values, that one day, people will look back and they will say, "Who could ever have doubted that of course, the universal values of democracy and freedom would take hold in the Middle East?" And they will say, "Who could have ever doubted that the people of Iraq and Afghanistan would be free?" And they will look back and they will say, "Thank God that America stayed the course."

I would say the President's three primary surrogates put on a very good show this week. And you know what they say, you can know someone by the company they keep. Mr. Bush was able to recruit these three extremely capable and dedicated individuals, and to keep them with him for (what looks to be) the duration of his presidency. That is very much to his credit.