President Bush on Tuesday night held the third prime-time press conference of his administration. The press conference came amid one of the most violent periods in the Iraq war, as dozens of American soldiers and contract workers have been killed in the past month. Reporters questioned Bush about his war policies and about the commission investigating the 9-11 terrorist attacks. The following are thoughts from readers:
President Bush addressed the nation to assure us of his resolve. Funny, I never thought to question it. I do question the intelligence of a war in Iraq started without a compelling reason to do so. I also question the judgment of sticking with policies despite overwhelming evidence of their failure. I question the integrity of a president who continues to allude to Iraq in the context of 9-11 although the two situations were unrelated. I question the humanity of a man who is incapable of articulating a single act for which he is sorry when thousands have died, lost loved ones or lost their livelihoods on his watch.
To remain steadfast while marching in the right direction is a sign of strength. To stubbornly trudge down the wrong path is inexcusable. There is much to question about this administration, but, question your resolve, Mr. President? Never.
Patricia Foster, Indian Hill
Regarding the so-called presidential press conference: "You can fool some of the people some of the time ..."
Perhaps time is running out.
Ronald Redder, Kings Mills
America watched as President Bush was relentlessly pressured by the media to apologize for the events of 9-11 and to admit his supposed failures in Iraq. I, too, would like to demand an apology - an apology from a media that has forgotten its purpose.
Once the task of collecting and presenting facts, journalism has become the practice of drawing conclusions first and later attempting to support those conclusions with carefully selected facts and pointed questions. The American public has been misled and misrepresented by a media that no longer trusts it to draw its own conclusions.
Vince Frieden, Forest Park
Listening to President Bush on Tuesday night, I was struck (as always) by his smugness and arrogance. It was particularly telling that, in response to a reporter's query, he was unable to think of a single mistake he might have made in his tenure in office. This president's unwillingness to rethink his decisions or admit that he may have miscalculated on domestic or foreign policy issues will go down as one of the hallmarks of his short presidency. Although some unfortunately interpret this trait as evidence of "strong leadership," the inevitable spiral toward lawlessness and anarchy in Iraq attests otherwise.
Mark Schleiss, Anderson Township
Have a topic you think readers should sound off on in this space? Send it to Ray Cooklis at rcooklis@enquirer.com; (513) 768-8525.
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