President Bush marked the Fourth of July by vowing not to prematurely withdraw troops from Iraq now that the momentum of the war appears to have swung in favor of U.S. forces.
“I’m going to make you this promise,” Bush told troops at Fort Bragg, N.C., on Tuesday. “I’m not going to allow the sacrifice of 2,527 troops who have died in Iraq to be in vain by pulling out before the job is done.”
He added, “Setting an artificial timetable would undermine the morale of our troops by sending the message that the mission for which you’ve risked your lives is not worth completing.”
Bush was referring to various proposals by Democratic members of Congress to withdraw U.S. forces by specific deadlines. All such measures have been defeated by Republican majorities in the Senate and House.
“Setting an artificial timetable would be a terrible mistake,” Bush said. “At a moment when the terrorists have suffered a series of significant blows, setting an artificial timetable would breathe new life into their cause.”
The president said the June 7 killing of terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has allowed U.S. forces to seize the initiative in Iraq.
“We’re on the offense,” said Bush, whose remarks were interrupted repeatedly by enthusiastic applause. “In the weeks since Zarqawi’s death, coalition and Iraqi forces have launched more than 190 raids on targets across the country. We’ve captured more than 700 enemy operatives and killed some 60 more.”
The raids have also netted weapons caches, suicide vests and Iraqi army uniforms used by terrorists as disguises.
“We’ve seized new intelligence information that is helping us keep the pressure on the terrorists and the insurgents,” Bush said. “And at this moment of vulnerability for the enemy, we will continue to strike their network, we will disrupt their operations, and we will bring their leaders to justice.”
Bush said documents seized from safe houses show that terrorists have deep “concerns” about the progress of U.S. forces.
“They bemoan the fact that we’re keeping the pressure on them,” he said. “They see the successes we’re having in training. They know we’re damaging their cause.
“This moment when the terrorists are suffering from the weight of successive blows is not the time to call retreat,” he added. “We will stay, we will fight, and we will prevail.”
