The president gets a solid “B” for his remarks on the War on Terror today. There’s much to like about the speech. First the basics: Two months ago, the Bush Administration was publicly considering a move from the Global War on Terror (GWOT) to the Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism (GSAVE). The switch was roundly and rightly mocked. So for Bush to give a strong speech essentially redeclaring the War on Terror is helpful. In one paragraph, he called out both Syria and Iran for their continued support of terrorists. (Bush actually said “sheltered.” Given what we know about Syrian and Iranian support for the terrorists in Iraq, one can imagine that was a word chosen after spirited debates among the speechwriting staff and policy types.) In the same graph he chided some Arab journalists for feeding anti-American and anti-Semitic hysteria. It was a good passage:
The influence of Islamic radicalism is also magnified by helpers and enablers. They have been sheltered by authoritarian regimes, allies of convenience like Syria and Iran, that share the goal of hurting America and moderate Muslim governments, and use terrorist propaganda to blame their own failures on the West and America, and on the Jews. These radicals depend on front operations, such as corrupted charities, which direct money to terrorist activity. They’re strengthened by those who aggressively fund the spread of radical, intolerant versions of Islam in unstable parts of the world. The militants are aided, as well, by elements of the Arab news media that incite hatred and anti-Semitism, that feed conspiracy theories and speak of a so-called American “war on Islam” — with seldom a word about American action to protect Muslims in Afghanistan, and Bosnia, Somalia, Kosovo, Kuwait, and Iraq.
Later, a restatement of the Bush Doctrine:
We’re determined to deny radical groups the support and sanctuary of outlaw regimes. State sponsors like Syria and Iran have a long history of collaboration with terrorists, and they deserve no patience from the victims of terror. The United States makes no distinction between those who commit acts of terror and those who support and harbor them, because they’re equally as guilty of murder. Any government that chooses to be an ally of terror has also chosen to be an enemy of civilization. And the civilized world must hold those regimes to account.
Again, good to reemphasize that fundamental position. But at what point do these “state sponsors of terror” begin to relax? We’ve known for some three years that Iran is harboring senior al Qaeda leaders, reportedly including Saad bin Laden, OBL’s son. Two weeks ago, Time magazine reported that Bashar Assad attended a January 2004 planning meeting for the insurgency in Iraq. If these reports are true, and there are doubtless others like them, what are we doing about it?
