Addressing a crowd at a naval base in Coronado, California, President Bush attempted to compare World War II and the present war in Iraq while making a speech to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the largest conflict the world has ever known.
'As we mark this anniversary, we are again a nation at war,' the president claimed. 'Once again war came to our shores with a surprise attack that killed thousands in cold blood,' he said, referring to September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
He described the enemy in Iraq as 'a ruthless enemy' and added that 'once again we will not rest until victory is America's and our freedom is secure.'
Bush also went as far as to invoke Franklin D. Roosevelt, who led the United States through the Great Depression and World War II, to his present situation now.
'Franklin Roosevelt refused to accept that democracy was finished,' Bush continued. 'His optimism reflected his belief that the enemy's will to power could not withstand our will to live in freedom.'
This was the third speech Mr. Bush has made in an attempt to rally flagging support for the continued war effort in Iraq. Polls show that less than 40 percent of Americans believe Bush has handled the war well and most Americans now believe the war in Iraq was a mistake.
There are vast differences between the situation America was facing in World War II in the wake of Pearl Harbor and the present situation in Iraq. In Pearl Harbor, the U.S. was attacked by a sovereign nation, Japan, who we subsequently declared war on. Iraq never attacked the United States and there is no evidence that there was any connection between the al-Qaeda terrorists who carried out the September 11 attacks and the government of Saddam Hussein.
Thus far, more than 1,860 Americans have died in the fighting in Iraq since Mr. Bush decided to invade that nation in March 2003. No weapons of mass destruction have been found since America gained control of Iraq a few weeks after the invasion.
