As a result of Bush, a free Republic hangs in the balance under the complete political control of totalitarian progressives because buffoons on Bush's national security council (NSC) did not know their Winston Churchill -   the only thing a wartime leader running a democracy can say in public during a war is: "We face blood, toil, tears and sweat."  Repeating 'blood, toil, tears and sweat' over and over and over and over again until even the progressives understand.  Everything in war is very difficult.  Fast forward seven, long, horrible years: "Last U.S. Combat Brigade Leaves Iraq August 18, 2010"  Has the free republic 'ended' as a result of Bush?

WSJ.com

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703649004575438210063921610.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories#articleTabs%3Darticle

Commander in Chief Makes Carrier Landing

President Bush made a landing aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln Thursday, May 1^st, 2003

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/05/01/bush.carrier.landing/

Bush's carrier landing: A defining moment in presidential politics. 

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=32393

Full Remarks by President Bush Thursday evening from the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln:

Admiral Kelly, Captain Card, officers and sailors of the USS Abraham Lincoln,my fellow Americans: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the Battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed. And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country.

In this battle, we have fought for the cause of liberty, and for the peace ofthe world. Our nation and our coalition are proud of this accomplishment — yetit is you, the members of the UnitedStates military, who achieved it. Yourcourage — your willingness to face danger for your country and for each other —made this day possible. Because of you, our nation is more secure. Because ofyou, the tyrant has fallen, and Iraqis free.

Operation Iraqi Freedom was carried out with a combination of precision, andspeed, and boldness the enemy did not expect, and the world had not seenbefore. From distant bases or ships at sea, we sent planes and missiles thatcould destroy an enemy division, or strike a single bunker. Marines andsoldiers charged to Baghdadacross 350 miles of hostile ground, in one of the swiftest advances of heavyarms in history. You have shown the world the skill and the might of theAmerican Armed Forces.

This nation thanks all of the members of our coalition who joined in a noblecause. We thank the Armed Forces of the UnitedKingdom, Australia,and Poland,who shared in the hardships of war. We thank all of the citizens of Iraq whowelcomed our troops and joined in the liberation of their own country. Andtonight, I have a special word for Secretary (Donald) Rumsfeld, for General(Tommy) Franks, and for all the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States: America is grateful for a job welldone.

The character of our military through history — the daring of Normandy, thefierce courage of Iwo Jima, the decency and idealism that turned enemies intoallies — is fully present in this generation. When Iraqi civilians looked intothe faces of our servicemen and women, they saw strength, and kindness, andgood will. When I look at the members of the United States military, I see thebest of our country, and I am honored to be your commander in chief.

In the images of fallen statues, we have witnessed the arrival of a new era.For a hundred years of war, culminating in the nuclear age, military technologywas designed and deployed to inflict casualties on an ever-growing scale. Indefeating Nazi Germany and imperial Japan, Allied Forces destroyedentire cities, while enemy leaders who started the conflict were safe until thefinal days. Military power was used to end a regime by breaking a nation.Today, we have the greater power to free a nation by breaking a dangerous andaggressive regime. With new tactics and precision weapons, we can achievemilitary objectives without directing violence against civilians. No device ofman can remove the tragedy from war. Yet it is a great advance when the guiltyhave far more to fear from war than the innocent.

In the images of celebrating Iraqis, we have also seen the ageless appeal ofhuman freedom. Decades of lies and intimidation could not make the Iraqi peoplelove their oppressors or desire their own enslavement. Men and women in everyculture need liberty like they need food, and water, and air. Everywhere thatfreedom arrives, humanity rejoices. And everywhere that freedom stirs, lettyrants fear.

We have difficult work to do in Iraq.We are bringing order to parts of that country that remain dangerous. We arepursuing and finding leaders of the old regime, who will be held to account fortheir crimes. We have begun the search for hidden chemical and biologicalweapons, and already know of hundreds of sites that will be investigated. Weare helping to rebuild Iraq,where the dictator built palaces for himself, instead of hospitals and schools.And we will stand with the new leaders of Iraq as they establish a governmentof, by, and for the Iraqi people. The transition from dictatorship to democracywill take time, but it is worth every effort. Our coalition will stay until ourwork is done. And then we will leave — and we will leave behind a free Iraq.

The Battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on Septemberthe 11th, 2001, and still goes on. That terrible morning, 19 evil men — theshock troops of a hateful ideology — gave America and the civilized world aglimpse of their ambitions. They imagined, in the words of one terrorist, thatSeptember the 11th would be the "beginning of the end of America."By seeking to turn our cities into killing fields, terrorists and their alliesbelieved that they could destroy this nation's resolve, and force our retreatfrom the world. They have failed.

In the Battle of Afghanistan, we destroyed the Taliban, many terrorists, andthe camps where they trained. We continue to help the Afghan people lay roads,restore hospitals, and educate all of their children. Yet we also have dangerouswork to complete. As I speak, a special operations task force, led by the 82ndAirborne, is on the trail of the terrorists, and those who seek to underminethe free government of Afghanistan.Americaand our coalition will finish what we have begun.

From Pakistan to the Philippines tothe Horn of Africa, we are hunting down al-Qaida killers. Nineteen months ago,I pledged that the terrorists would not escape the patient justice of the United States.And as of tonight, nearly one-half of al-Qaida's senior operatives have beencaptured or killed.

The liberation of Iraqis a crucial advance in the campaign against terror. We have removed an ally ofal-Qaida, and cut off a source of terrorist funding. And this much is certain:No terrorist network will gain weapons of mass destruction from the Iraqiregime, because the regime is no more.

In these 19 months that changed the world, our actions have been focused, anddeliberate, and proportionate to the offense. We have not forgotten the victimsof September the 11th — the last phone calls, the cold murder of children, thesearches in the rubble. With those attacks, the terrorists and their supportersdeclared war on the UnitedStates. And war is what they got.

Our war against terror is proceeding according to principles that I have madeclear to all:

Any person involved in committing or planning terrorist attacks against theAmerican people becomes an enemy of this country, and a target of Americanjustice.

Any person, organization, or government that supports, protects, or harborsterrorists is complicit in the murder of the innocent, and equally guilty ofterrorist crimes.

Any outlaw regime that has ties to terrorist groups, and seeks or possessesweapons of mass destruction, is a grave danger to the civilized world, and willbe confronted.

And anyone in the world, including the Arab world, who works and sacrifices forfreedom has a loyal friend in the United States of America.

Our commitment to liberty is America'stradition — declared at our founding, affirmed in Franklin Roosevelt's FourFreedoms, asserted in the Truman Doctrine, and in Ronald Reagan's challenge toan evil empire. We are committed to freedom in Afghanistan,in Iraq, and in a peaceful Palestine. The advance offreedom is the surest strategy to undermine the appeal of terror in the world.Where freedom takes hold, hatred gives way to hope. When freedom takes hold,men and women turn to the peaceful pursuit of a better life. American values,and American interests, lead in the same direction: We stand for human liberty.

The United Statesupholds these principles of security and freedom in many ways — with all thetools of diplomacy, law enforcement, intelligence, and finance. We are workingwith a broad coalition of nations that understand the threat, and our sharedresponsibility to meet it. The use of force has been, and remains, our lastresort. Yet all can know, friend and foe alike, that our nation has a mission:We will answer threats to our security, and we will defend the peace.

Our mission continues. Al-Qaida is wounded, not destroyed. The scattered cellsof the terrorist network still operate in many nations, and we know from dailyintelligence that they continue to plot against free people. The proliferationof deadly weapons remains a serious danger. The enemies of freedom are notidle, and neither are we. Our government has taken unprecedented measures todefend the homeland — and we will continue to hunt down the enemy before he canstrike.

The war on terror is not over, yet it is not endless. We do not know the day offinal victory, but we have seen the turning of the tide. No act of theterrorists will change our purpose, or weaken our resolve, or alter their fate.Their cause is lost. Free nations will press on to victory.

Other nations in history have fought in foreign lands and remained to occupyand exploit. Americans, following a battle, want nothing more than to returnhome. And that is your direction tonight. After service in the Afghan and Iraqitheaters of war — after 100,000 miles, on the longest carrier deployment inrecent history — you are homeward bound. Some of you will see new familymembers for the first time — 150 babies were born while their fathers were onthe Lincoln.Your families are proud of you, and your nation will welcome you.

We are mindful as well that some good men and women are not making the journey home. One of those who fell, Corporal Jason Mileo, spoke to his parents five days before his death. Jason's father said, "He called us from the center of Baghdad, not to brag, but to tell us he loved us. Our son was a soldier." Every name,every life, is a loss to our military, to our nation, and to the loved ones who grieve. There is no homecoming for these families. Yet we pray, in God's time, their reunion will come.

Those we lost were last seen on duty. Their final act on this earth was to fight a great evil, and bring liberty to others. All of you — all in this generation of our military — have taken up the highest calling of history. You are defending your country, and protecting the innocent from harm. And wherever you go, you carry a message of hope — a message that is ancient, and ever new.In the words of the prophet Isaiah: "To the captives, 'Come out!' and to those in darkness, 'Be free!"'

Thank you for serving our country and our cause. May God bless you all, and may God continue to bless America.