[tag]Kevin Phillips[/tag] recently published a new book, “American Theocracy,” based in part on the idea that [tag]George W. Bush[/tag] is heading “the first religious party in U.S. history,” basing life-and-death policy decisions on the power of “the tens of millions of true believers viewing events through a Left Behind perspective.”
If [tag]Bush[/tag] hopes to disprove Phillips’ thesis, this probably wasn’t the way to do it.
Speaking to a business group in Irvine, Ca.,… Bush also explained, in unusually stark terms, how his belief in [tag]God[/tag] [tag]influences[/tag] his [tag]foreign policy[/tag].
“I base a lot of my foreign policy decisions on some things that I think are true,” he said. “One, I believe there’s an Almighty. And, secondly, I believe one of the great gifts of the Almighty is the desire in everybody’s soul, regardless of what you look like or where you live, to be free. I believe liberty is universal. I believe people want to be free. And I know that democracies do not war with each other.”
(The official transcript is here, and C&L’s video is here.)
Now, it’s possible that Bush was just emphasizing his belief that freedom is a universal concept, which he’s said before. In this context, the remarks were more in line with a Declaration of Independence-style “endowed by their [tag]creator[/tag]” kind of thinking.
But the key part of the quote was Bush’s claim that he’s basing his “foreign policy decisions” on his religious beliefs. That, in a word, is scary. Anyone, whether they’re president of not, who believes their policy decisions are based on God’s wishes, acts with dangerous certainty. They can not be dissuaded or discouraged because, in their mind, God “told” them what to do. Indeed, critics and opponents are not only viewed as incorrect, they’re seen as heretics.
This also, unfortunately, dovetails with recent reporting from [tag]Seymour Hersh[/tag].
Current and former military and intelligence officials have told me that the President remains convinced that it is his personal mission to bring democracy to Iraq, and that he is impervious to political pressure, even from fellow Republicans. They also say that he disparages any information that conflicts with his view of how the war is proceeding.
Bush’s closest advisers have long been aware of the religious nature of his policy commitments. In recent interviews, one former senior official, who served in Bush’s first term, spoke extensively about the connection between the President’s religious faith and his view of the war in Iraq. After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the former official said, he was told that Bush felt that “God put me here” to deal with the war on terror. The President’s belief was fortified by the Republican sweep in the 2002 congressional elections; Bush saw the victory as a purposeful message from God that “he’s the man,” the former official said. Publicly, Bush depicted his reelection as a referendum on the war; privately, he spoke of it as another manifestation of [tag]divine[/tag] purpose.
Bush’s policies have been frightening enough; the idea that he believes he’s on some kind of religious crusade is simply breathtaking.