Smart bombs

Five years into the war in Iraq, and the Bush administration still thinks you’re stupid. You’d think the litany of mistakes, misjudgments and miscalculations would’ve produced a heaping helping of humility. Or at least a hint of honesty.

But, no, the president and the vice president continue to bend every development to fit whatever elixir they’re selling that day.

Vice President Dick Cheney was recently in Iraq, where he called the war a “successful endeavor” that has been “well worth the effort.” When a reporter asked him about polls showing that two-thirds of Americans disagreed, he replied, “So?”

Four thousand troops have died, the price tag is approaching $600 billion and tangible results remain a distant dream, and he wonders why your opinion matters.

Not to be outdone, President Bush said on Friday that the battle in Basra is “a defining moment in the history of a free Iraq.”

Like “the end of major combat operations” in 2003? Like the capture of Saddam Hussein? Like the return of sovereignty to Iraq in 2004? Like the elections? Like the writing of the constitution? Like the “surge”?

Don’t be stupid.

According to myriad reports coming out of Basra, the situation is this: Multiple Shiite gangs – all aided by Iran – are waging a turf battle in oil-rich southern Iraq. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is partial to one of the gangs – the Badr Brigade – and has thrown his forces behind it in a battle against the Madhi Army of crime boss Muqtada al-Sadr.

U.S. forces are backing al-Maliki, which is like choosing the Corleones over the Tattaglias. One of the keys to the drop in violence in Iraq over the past few months was the cease-fire declared by al-Sadr. Those gains could very well unravel now that his formidable forces have been stirred.

But Bush can’t bring himself to tell the American people that. No, he chooses to spin this turf battle into something noble. He said the prime minister was probably responding to the pleas of Basra residents who are “sick and tired” of criminal behavior. Furthermore, the upstanding al-Maliki was demonstrating his commitment to “even-handed justice.”

Another selling point was that the Iraqi army was showing that it could handle this alone. But it ultimately became clear that U.S. forces were providing important air cover and other military assistance. If this battle is indeed a defining moment for Iraq, then it looks like the end is nowhere near for the United States.

So?