…thankfully. People are in no mood to believe optimistic assurances about Iraq anymore, but I think they will still be receptive to a message of resoluteness grounded in a no-nonsense realism. This means Bush is taking the right tack in his new Iraq push, as reported in the Wall Street Journal this morning (sorry no link):
President Bush will launch another major public-relations offensive to strengthen support for the Iraq war — this time likely emphasizing the high stakes and changing nature of the battle more than the progress being made. The series of speeches begins tomorrow at the annual American Legion convention in Utah and will continue through the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and on into the middle of next month.
The new campaign is aimed at framing the Iraq debate over what the White House considers the vital stakes involved in the war and reinforcing public sentiment that favors sticking it out. The speeches will be aimed at rebutting mounting public calls — from Democrats and even a few Republicans — for setting some kind of timetable for at least a limited troop withdrawal.
Still, the new series of speeches — the president’s third major round of Iraq addresses in less than a year — might in some ways sound less upbeat than prior rhetorical campaigns on the issue. While past addresses often stressed improvements on the ground, that theme is likely to be less prominent in coming weeks. Instead, Mr. Bush is likely to talk more about the importance of winning and how the U.S. is adapting to the changing nature of the struggle against terrorism in Iraq and beyond, stressing the continuing violence in Baghdad and the recent Israel-Hezbollah conflict.