It was only a matter of time before little George Jr. would have the audacity (and stupidity) to criticize President Obama's foreign strategies and peace negotiations. This past Saturday turned out to be
that time. He just couldn't hold back any longer.
Bloomberg and
The New York Times both report that during a closed-door meeting for
The Republican Jewish Coalition, George Bush Jr. basically told hundreds of donors that President Obama was not handling the whole
war thing very well. The JRC audience in Las Vegas listened, knowing this former president is
considered a war criminal by many in this country, as well as around the world. Bush's administration is responsible for the slaughter
of hundreds of thousand of innocent civilians, causing the deaths of over 5,000 American troops, and using
illegal torture to seek information. Yet this war monger feels it's okay to publicly censure a peace-seeking president - for not being tough enough.
New York Times writers, Michael Barbaro and Maggie Haberman report:
Several attendees sensed a tacit critique of Mr. Obama and his failure to follow through on his threats to use force when Mr. Bush said “you gotta mean it” when talking tough, and that America’s allies and enemies needed to know where an American leader stood. He also discussed his own approach in Iraq, saying he changed course when it was warranted.
“You call in the military and say, ‘Here’s my goal. What’s your plan to help me achieve that goal?'” attendees quoted him as saying. He added that when asked what had to be done with terrorists bent on America’s destruction, the answer was “well, you kill ‘em,” several attendees recalled.
'You kill 'em.' Well, of course, that would be his answer. Killing is what Bush has done best. It's what he's known for - it will be his legacy. According to Josh Rogin with Bloomberg, one of the transcribers from the donor meeting said:
Bush then went into a detailed criticism of Obama’s policies in fighting the Islamic State and dealing with the chaos in Iraq. On Obama’s decision to withdraw all U.S. troops in Iraq at the end of 2011, he quoted Senator Lindsey Graham calling it a “strategic blunder.” Bush signed an agreement with the Iraqi government to withdraw those troops, but the idea had been to negotiate a new status of forces agreement to keep U.S. forces there past 2011. The Obama administration tried and failed to negotiate such an agreement.
Bush reportedly implied that during
his watch, terrorists were put in jail.
Bush said he views the rise of the Islamic State as al-Qaeda’s "second act” and that they may have changed the name but that murdering innocents is still the favored tactic. He defended his own administration’s handling of terrorism, noting that the terrorist Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who confessed to killing Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, was captured on his watch: “Just remember the guy who slit Danny Pearl’s throat is in Gitmo, and now they're doing it on TV.”
Perhaps Bush just forgot to mention on
his watch, Gitmo (Guantanamo Detention Camp) became one of this nation's monumental disgraces, next to the
Iraq War (also known as 'Bush's War'). During
his watch, the prison camp was known to be America's torture chamber, using
water-boarding as just one of the forms of investigation. And he forgot to mention that on
his watch, his 'War on Terror,' actually fueled more terrorists and hatred towards America. Some think Bush
helped create ISIS.
It's hard for some of us to believe this man is not in prison, much less out there having a good time at posh fundraisers, condemning anyone's foreign policies. Perhaps Bush thinks that enough time has gone by, and people have forgotten the damage, destruction, and massive deaths that have been caused by him and his administration. No, Mr. Bush, we haven't forgotten. And history will never forget. Be grateful you and Dick Cheney are still allowed to walk free. Don't push it.
Read More:
BloombergView.com
The New York Times
Thank you, Wojteck Wocowski and Nannette Harrison.
A special shout out to Facebook Page Americans Against Republican Wars.
And special mention to Code Pink, a grassroots peace and social justice movement (formed in 2002) working to end U.S.-funded wars and occupations. You can visit their website here.