In his press conference this week, President Bush once again made it clear that we are in a war for survival against a ruthless international terrorist organization that will use torture and mass murder to achieve its goals. He carefully outlined the steps being taken to build a secure and free Iraq. He talked about the plans to turn over the governing of the Middle—Eastern country to its own people and thereby complete the transition from dictatorship to democracy. The president spoke plainly about the need for standing firm against terrorism: 'Now is the time, and Iraq is the place, in which the enemies of the civilized world are testing the will of the civilized world. We must not waver. The violence we are seeing in Iraq is familiar. The terrorists who take hostages or plants a roadside bomb near Baghdad is serving the same ideology of murder that kills innocent people on trains in Madrid, and murders children on buses in Jerusalem, and blows up a nightclub in Bali and cuts the throat of a young reporter for being a Jew.'

The first questioner asked Mr. Bush how he feels about the polls showing a decline in support for his policy. The reply was straight to the point; he said he doesn't make decisions based on polls. 'I just don't make decisions that way. I fully understand the consequences of what we're doing. We're changing the world, and the world will be better off and America will be more secure as a result of the actions we're taking.' That's one of the things I like about this president. He didn't equivocate and mutter some politically correct assortment of psychobabble; he stated clearly that when he's faced with a decision he doesn't wet his finger and hold it in the air to see which way the wind is blowing. If America wants that type of leadership they can pull the lever for John Kerry in November. Some of the questions were so pathetic that one would have to believe the reporter just wanted to appear on television. 'Mr. President, what's your best prediction on how long the troops will be in Iraq?' Bush: 'As long as necessary, and not one day more.'

The rest of the questioning might just as well have come from John Kerry campaign spokesmen, or from the Al Jazeera  Cable News Network. 'Mr. President, two and a half years later, do you feel any sense of personal responsibility for 9/11?' Bush: 'I feel incredibly grieved when I meet family members, and I do frequently. I grieve for...the incredible loss of life that they feel, the emptiness they feel.' Question: 'One of the biggest criticisms of you is that...you never admit a mistake. Is that a fair criticism, and do you believe there were any errors in judgment you made related to the war?' Question: 'Two weeks ago, Richard Clarke offered an apology to the American people for failing them prior to 9/11. Do you believe the American people deserve a similar apology from you?' Bush: 'Here's what I feel about that: The person responsible for the attacks was Osama bin Laden. That's who's responsible for killing Americans. Question: 'In the last campaign, you were asked a question about the biggest mistake you'd made in your life, and you used to like to joke that it was trading Sammy Sosa. After 9—11, what would your biggest mistake be, would you say, and what lessons have learned from it?' 

What those reporters were looking for were damaging sound bites that would be part of a John Kerry political ad about an hour later. 'BUSH ADMITS HE MADE A MISTAKE WITH IRAQ WAR!' How long will it be before this country fully recognizes the threat we're facing from these homicidal crackpots in the bizarre world of Islamic fundamentalism? While Democrats and Republicans battle it out for political supremacy, plots are being hatched to take down our entire civilization.

The 9/11 attack was merely the first salvo in a demonic plot to erase the Western world. While the 9/11 Commission is trying to assess blame for the last tragedy that cost an ocean of American blood, I have no doubt there is another commission planning the next slaughter of the innocents. They don't waste time squabbling over what already happened; they're too busy putting their next plan into action. When they do, I want the same man steering this ship of state, not some waffling poll counter with his wet finger in the air.

Bob Weir writes the syndicated column, Weir Only "Human." The author of 7 books, he is a retired NYPD sergeant, living in Flower Mound, Texas. BobWeir777@aol.com