President Bush - Loneliness of the long distance runner

By Greg Richards

Now that even Obama has admitted that the surge in Iraq is a success, it is perhaps worth recalling just how alone – except for McCain – Bush was politically when he made that decision in January 2007.

The reaction of the Left was epitomized by the “Special Comment” of Keith Olbermann on MSNBC on January 11, 2007, the day after President Bush’s speech. In his peroration at the end of his antagonistic commentary, Olberman said:

“Mr. Bush, this is madness. You have lost the military; you have lost the Congress to the Democrats; you have lost most of the Iraqis; you have lost many of the Republicans; you have lost our allies in this. You are losing the credibility not just of your presidency, sir, but, more importantly, of your office itself. And most imperatively, you are guaranteeing that more American troops will be losing their lives and more families their loved ones. You are guaranteeing that!

“This becomes your legacy, sir. How many of those you addressed last night as your “fellow citizens,” you just sent to their deaths? And for what, Mr. Bush? So that the next president has to pull the survivors out of Iraq, instead of you?”

Keith, something you as a sportscaster should have remembered: don’t call the game before it’s over!