I don’t write about the daily battles in Iraq; they’re hard to keep up with. Nevertheless, the attacks are increasing. Our troops were experiencing as many as 25 attacks a day a couple of months ago, now it’s 35 a day. Sunday, rockets were launched at a Baghdad hotel at which Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz was staying. An American colonel was killed and 16 people were injured.
Sunday night, three more U.S. troops were killed, and four injured, in separate attacks.
And yesterday, well-coordinated attacks killed at least 35 people and injured over 200. Among the targets were a Red Cross building in Baghdad and local police stations.
It’s hard not to see these tragedies as a sign of the situation in Iraq getting considerably worse. It’s also hard to not to see President Bush as out of his mind when he argues the opposite.
The front page of the Washington Post today reads, “Bush Says Attacks Are Reflection of U.S. Gains.”
Yes, according to Bush, the attacks are a good sign.
The Post reported that Bush said yesterday’s attacks “should be seen as a sign of progress because they show the desperation of those who oppose the U.S.-led occupation.”
As Bush said from the Oval Office, “The more successful we are on the ground, the more these killers will react.”
So if I’m hearing the administration correctly, when there are fewer attacks on the troops, it’s a good sign that we’re winning over the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people. When there are more attacks, it’s a good sign that the enemy is getting desperate.
To hear the Bush White House tell it, every day in Iraq is a success and every criticism of their efforts is wrong.
This administration gets scarier all the time.