Bush Vows to ‘Finish the Task’ to Honor Fallen

With antiwar protests continuing outside his Texas ranch and public approval of his leadership sagging, President Bush broke from his monthlong summer vacation to defend his Iraq policies against critics who say he should bring U.S. forces home.

Speaking Monday to a friendly audience at the annual convention of Veterans of Foreign Wars, Bush offered a rare presidential tally of the fallen U.S. soldiers in Iraq -- more than 1,800 at the time of his appearance.

Bush did not mention Cindy Sheehan, the mother of a slain soldier who has led the protests near his Texas vacation property. But his reference to the dead troops and their grieving families was an apparent acknowledgment that Sheehan and other parents allied with her have proven to be formidable foes in the battle for public opinion.

“We have lost 1,864 members of our armed forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom and 223 in Operation Enduring Freedom,” Bush said, referring to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. “Each of these men and women left grieving families and loved ones back home.”

“We owe them something,” he added moments later, referring again to the fallen troops. “We will finish the task that they gave their lives for. We will honor their sacrifice by staying on the offensive against the terrorists, and building strong allies in Afghanistan and Iraq that will help us ... fight and win the war on terror.”

The speech came as Iraqi officials worked without success to agree on a new constitution, a potential setback for the Bush administration. With the deadline for an agreement already extended once, Iraqi officials failed Monday to resolve a number of sensitive issues by a second deadline and instead sought three more days to work.

“Producing a constitution is a difficult process that involves debate and compromise,” Bush said. “We know this from our own history.”

While Bush’s words Monday did not reflect any changes in U.S. policy or any direct response to critics calling for a pullout timetable, the speech marked a renewed effort by White House officials to stem what some Republican strategists worry is a rising tide of opposition that could hamper GOP candidates in next year’s elections. Recent polls show that public support for Bush’s handling of Iraq has dropped below 40%, and that his overall approval rating has dipped below 50%.

A Newsweek survey this month, for example, showed that 54% of respondents disapproved of Bush’s handling of Iraq, while 26% said they supported keeping large numbers of U.S. forces in Iraq until U.S. goals were achieved.

Further illustrating the conundrum for the administration, the death toll in Iraq had risen by the end of the day, surpassing the number Bush gave by at least five.

One Republican considering a run for president in 2008, Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, a Vietnam veteran, criticized Bush last week and again over the weekend for failing to meet with Sheehan, who is expected to return to her Crawford protest this week after tending to her ailing mother in Los Angeles. Sheehan and other protesters, who first arrived in Crawford on Aug. 6, have gained attention while Bush has been on vacation and largely out of view.

Her son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, was killed in Iraq last year at age 24. Cindy Sheehan and other members of military families were part of a small group that met briefly with Bush last year, but Sheehan has said that her opposition to the war has intensified and that she wants a second meeting with Bush.

Monday’s speech marked Bush’s first public appearance since he attended a Little League regional championship game in Waco on Aug. 13 -- a break from a vacation of off-road bicycling, fishing and relaxing that left the president’s face bronzed. He rode over the weekend with Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong and last week was host to a group of journalists for a bicycle tour of his property.

Hundreds of protesters, including Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, rallied Monday in Salt Lake City a few blocks from where Bush was speaking. They were led by Celeste Zappala, whose son, Sherwood Baker, a member of a Pennsylvania National Guard unit, was killed in 2004 at age 30.

Zappala, a member of the antiwar group Military Families Speak Out and a founder, with Sheehan, of Gold Star Families for Peace, said she spent a week with Sheehan at the Crawford protest and had no plans of letting up.

“I don’t know that the president would ever talk to us, since he doesn’t necessarily talk to people who disagree with him,” Zappala said in an interview. “But I’m a religious person, and I feel like I’m giving witness to the loss of my son for the 1,863 others, and for all the people who are injured and who will die today in Iraq. Somehow, this policy is not working.”

Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), who flew aboard Air Force One with Bush to attend the VFW event, later defended the president to the protesters. Hatch credited Bush for the fact that no terrorist attack had occurred on U.S. soil since Sept. 11, 2001, and said the efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan were faring far better than critics had suggested. “We’re going to win over there if we just have the guts to stick with it and do what’s right,” Hatch said.

In addressing the VFW, Bush found an attentive and sympathetic audience. He drew repeated ovations from thousands of veterans and their families as he vowed to press for victory in Iraq. He drew enthusiastic cheers when he called on Congress to approve a constitutional amendment banning the desecration of the U.S. flag.

In his remarks, Bush sought to portray the war in Iraq as one piece of his broader vision to transform the Middle East. He linked the fight against terrorists to the struggles of the 20th century against Nazism and communism, and he noted those efforts also resulted in casualties.

“Each of these struggles for freedom required great sacrifice,” the president said. “From the beaches of Normandy to the snows of Korea, courageous Americans gave their lives so others could live in freedom.

“Since the morning of Sept. 11, we have known that the war on terror would require great sacrifice as well.”

Bush did not directly challenge his Iraq critics, but he suggested that pulling out would make the United States more vulnerable. “A policy of retreat and isolation will not bring us safety,” he said.

Bush is expected to focus on Iraq again Wednesday, when he appears at the Idaho Center near Boise, where he is scheduled to discuss the war on terrorism with National Guard members and Air Force personnel.