Deconstructing Bush's War on Terrorism

Bush's strategy in the "war on terrorism" goes something like this: a) We must win the war against terror (or islamic fascism, or islamic fundamentalism, take your pick), our existence, our way of life, our civilization depends on it; b) The Iraq War is the central theater of that war against terror; c) Therefore, we must win the Iraq War (with "winning" defined as a stable democracy able to defend itself against internal and external enemies), otherwise we will lose the war against terror, otherwise our existence, our way of life, our civilization will disappear; d) To win the Iraq War, the US must train the Iraqi security forces, provide them with the necessary equipment, help with reconstruction, and, for that to happen, e) Iraqi leaders must resolve their factional, religious, and power disputes.

Assuming, arguendo, the validity of each premise and their logical nexus--no matter how unstuck from reality they may be--a rather frightening conclusion emerges: by the logic of Bush's own strategy, our winning the entire war against terror, not just Iraq, and defending the survival of our civilization, depends on Iraqi politicians resolving their factional, religious and power disputes.

That is, if Bush is correct, he has committed the most unforgivable transgression of any leader--outsourcing our very survival (again, that's his logical premise) to others, and, in this case, not just to any other, but to the resolution of sectarian and tribal animosities that have persisted for a millenium. At least, in the former Yugoslavia, similarly torn by ethnic and sectarian strife,the risk of our failure was not the survival of our civilization, but only theirs.

This is not mere sophistry. At today's "press conference" Bush registered a ringing endorsement of the supremacy of Iraqi politicians. Milestones? Up to Iraq. Security? Up to the Iraqi forces. Permanent bases? Up to Iraq. Prime Minister al-Maliki chimed in at his own press conference that he would not be handed milestones, and last week he released Moqtada al-Sadr's chief deputy who had been arrested by US forces. This is in a region that has been described as "tribes with flags" in a book by that name--loyalties go first to clan and only then, perhaps, to nation.

The Bush Administration, especially in this campaign season, cites Osama bin Laden's statements as "proof" of the centrality of the Iraq War. One is reminded of Muhammed Ali's technique of laying on the ropes while stronger opponents punched themselves out. He called it the "rope-a-dope".