Bush Praises Troops During Morale-Boosting Tour of Bases

President Bush, in a morale-boosting trip to military bases, praised the valor of American forces today and told flag-waving crowds that Iraq’s ability to wage war “is being systematically destroyed.”

Sixteen days into Operation Desert Storm, Bush spoke repeatedly of sacrifices still to be made. But he also declared, “We are on course, we are on schedule and things go well.”

At each stop, Bush met privately with military families, mostly spouses of men in the Persian Gulf. Their identities were not released. Two pilots based at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, N.C., are listed as prisoners of war and two others are missing in action.

Bush referred to the missing when he said, “Today, while some may be prisoners of war and others may have made the ultimate sacrifice, a lifetime of democracy and faith in God keeps their spirit free.”

The President reported on the war during visits to Marine, Air Force and Army bases in North Carolina and Georgia. Thousands of military personnel and their families turned out to vigorously cheer their wartime commander in chief.

“I heard on the radio, the President is going to North Carolina to lift the morale of the people,” Bush told a large crowd in a frigid airport hangar at Cherry Point Marine Air Station. “Let me assure you, it’s the other way around after seeing this group.”

At Goldsboro, Bush ate a barbecue picnic lunch outdoors in frigid temperatures, surrounded by a huge throng of military spouses and dependents.

“I know it’s been tough on a lot of you, maybe all of you,” the President said.

Recalling the long ovation given to American troops during his State of the Union address, Bush said, “I hope that Saddam Hussein in his bunker somewhere in Baghdad saw every single minute of it.” Bush said the salute was proof that “we are a nation united.”

To the many children in the audience, Bush said, “Your parents are enduring the hardships of war today so you may know the blessings of peace tomorrow.”