Bush tells troops Iraq not ‘hopeless’
President visits Alaska base on way to Asia
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska – President Bush said Monday that U.S. troops going to Iraq soon will find a country dramatically different from the one that was “hopeless” before his troop buildup.
Beginning a weeklong Asian tour with a refueling stop in Alaska, the president offered thanks to units from this base near Fairbanks and nearby Fort Wainwright that have done tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“About a year ago, people thought Iraq was lost and hopeless. People were saying ‘Let’s get out of there, it doesn’t matter to our national security.’ Iraq’s changed – a lot,” Bush said. “The terrorists are on the run.”
As Air Force One refueled, the president got an enthusiastic welcome from the military members in a hangar known as the Thunderdome. But for him, there also was a delicate bit of politics at play.
Among those in attendance was Sen. Ted Stevens, whose indictment on corruption charges has roiled Republican politics and prompted some of his colleagues to keep their distance.
Bush acknowledged Stevens briefly and warmly, saying the military has no stronger friend. Josh Bolten, the president’s chief of staff, was seen chatting with Stevens after the president spoke.
As a member of Alaska’s delegation, Stevens was invited as a matter of protocol.
White House press secretary Dana Perino said Stevens’ participation was “absolutely appropriate.”
Perino said she did not think Bush had spoken to Stevens since his indictment last week. The 40-year Senate veteran is accused of concealing gifts from a powerful oil services company. He has pleaded not guilty to the seven-count indictment against him.
Eielson is home to the 354th Fighter Wing, which supports operations in the Pacific.
The president departed after his comments for Seoul, South Korea.
His agenda in Asia this week is front-loaded with nuclear worries, political repression and recovery from natural disaster. Then comes plenty of sports.
Bush’s last venture as president to the Far East is built around the Olympics in Beijing.
Yet with less than six months left in office, he is also out to show that the United States is engaged in Asia’s affairs and that the economic and security dividends pay off back home.
His enthusiastic plans to attend the Olympics are meant to pay respect to the Chinese people in their moment of glory. Yet as hard as Bush tries to define the games only in the context of sports, there is no escaping the politics of a world event held in a police state.
China, trying to ensure the event is clean of controversy, has only intensified its repression of political dissent, religious expression and press coverage. Bush says he can and will candidly raise concerns about China’s human rights record to President Hu Jintao.