The Bush Rope-A-Dope

The Washington Post reports that President Bush, Vice President Cheney and a dozen aids met with a group of military experts. According to the article these experts bluntly told the President our policies in Iraq have failed but they’re skeptical of the Iraq Study Group’s recommendations to reduce troop levels and initiate diplomacy with Iran and Syria. The Washington Post is basing their article on “sources familiar with the meeting.”

Obviously those sources are from the White House. Through leaks the Bush Administration is hoping to rope-a-dope and counter punch simultaneously. The public will hear that Bush has received a candid assessment of his conduct of the war to provide a veneer of credibility. However, the public will also receive a steady drumbeat of propaganda that we can’t reduce our troop levels presently.

The Washington Post even reports that retired Gen. John M. Keane advocated for several thousand additional soldiers to enhance security in Baghdad. This article is one salvo of many to come as the White House attempts to discredit longtime Bush family concierge James Baker.

Baker however is an old pro at public relations jiujutsu and won’t be so easily thwarted. Nevertheless, Bush’s intransigence only reinforces my conviction that congress must consider one of three options: impeachment, invoking the War Powers Act or cutting off funding.