Bush - Backsliding on Terror?

Posted: January 22, 2008  Author: Dr. Moss

Like many, I find myself scratching my head over Bush's trip to the Middle East and his prior efforts at Annapolis.  The obvious question: after a tough two terms as President, has he now fully detached himself from reality?

Why would the man who stood atop the rubble at Ground Zero, defiantly proclaiming that the terrorists will be hearing from us, who unabashedly described the "axis of evil," who led the war on terror (however incompetently), who fought two wars in distant lands and brought an end to two terrorist sponsoring regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, who created the Department of Homeland Security and midwifed the Patriot Act, who said "you're either with us or against us in the war on terror," now saddle up with Fatah (which runs the Palestinian Authority), the offspring of uber terrorist Yasir Arafat, the father of modern terrorism, the group whose unique, original contribution to world civilization has been the suicide bomber? 

Why would he now engage the corrupt, incompetent, terroristic Palestinian Authority (PA) and its leader, holocaust denier and Arafat's number two man, the so called "moderate" Mahmoud Abbas?  Does he not see the obvious deception, the hypocrisy, and the absurdity of even thinking of the PA/Fatah as "moderate," given their record of duplicity, their open support of terrorist groups, the terrorists in their ranks, not to mention their ineptness and kleptocractic tendencies?  

What happened to the Bush that rejected Palestinian terror and refused even to meet or negotiate with them until they had done the same?  What happened to the Bush that demanded the Palestinians dismantle their terrorist infrastructure?  What happened to the Bush who said "you're either with us or against us in the war on terror"?  

All that he has stood for has been turned on its head.  Bush stands shoulder to shoulder with the terrorists.

Abbas, who heads the Palestinian Authority, was Arafat's second in command.  The Palestinian Authority, which was run by Arafat's Fatah group after Oslo, are supposed to be the secular, socialist, democratic alternative to Islamic groups like Hamas, but in reality they are every bit as militant and Jihadist as the rest.  Further, they are profoundly corrupt. 

The PA has been the reciepient of billions of dollars in foriegn aid, more per capita than the Marshall Plan for Europe (Micheal Oren), the world's greatest welfare basket case running away, most of which has been filched by Fatah big shots, particularlyYasir Arafat and his inner circle, while Palestinians continue to live in poverty.  Much of the money has gone also to fund the militias and terrorist groups that do the PA's dirty work including Fatah's own militant wing, the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade.  They have used their donated wealth to build a 60,000 well armed PA police force who fled at the first sight of the less well armed but determined Hamas in Gaza last June.  They have funded their state controlled media which spews in Arabic the same Jihadist, militant, anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, anti-US rhetoric heard from Hamas and Hezbollah.  The truth is that Fatah, which runs the PA, is a mirror image of Hamas, only they put on a show before the western media, making conciliatory noises in English about accepting Israel's right to exist and other such phony puffery while renouncing any such notions on the Arab street (in Arabic), at public rallies, on the radio, in print, at Mosques, and at schools, often indoctrinating their citizenry and young people about the glories of "martyrdom" and killing Jews.  

The PA/Fatah has done more to radicalize and poison Palestinian society than any other force or group.  In fact, it is their Islamic militancy combined with rampant corruption that has paved the way for Hamas to defeat them in the Palestinian elections of January 06.  Indeed, without the protection of the Israeli army in the West Bank, Hamas would quickly take over this final fiefdom/cash cow of the PA, converting the entire Palestinian territory into Hamastan/Jihadland, an arm of Iran, funded and supported by the mullahs even as Hezbollah is in Lebanon, bringing Tehran right up to Israel's security border in Jerusalem. 

It is the PA, by the way, that launched the suicide bombing campaign (the second intifadah) against Israel through their terrorist allies beginning in 2001 resulting in the deaths of more than a thousand innocent Israeli civilians, that led to the creation of Israel's security perimeter in the first place.

So, again, we ask, has President Bush taken leave of his senses?

Why is he investing in those who invented the modern terrorist/Jihadist movement and its most successful innovation, the suicide bomber?

Why is he throwing more money at those who are inveterately corrupt and who will invariably use the funds to develop more terrorist infrastructure and line their pockets? 

Why would the man who has led the war on terror (again, however incompetently), fought two wars in distant lands, ending the regimes of two terrorist sponsoring states, preside over the creation of a third?

Why would the man who understands Arafat, Fatah, and the PA for the corrupt terrorists they are now agree to negotiate with them?

Why is he screaming about Israeli settlements and about ending the Israeli "occupation" and about Israel making hard choices for a peace that doesn't exist, with a terrorist group whose ultimate aim either now or in stages is to destroy the Jewish state? 

Why is he pressuring Israel to make concessions that will threaten its security, to make deals with a group that will not honor any obligations as they have demonstrated repeatedly since the disastrous Oslo accords? 

There are any number of theories:

He is a weakened President at the end of his second term, profoundly unpopular, reviled around the world and in his own country, seeking somehow to go out on a high note.

He wants to burnish his credentials if not in the eyes of the world today (perhaps impossible) then in the eyes of history.

He was bamboozled by the pro-Palestinian, pro-Arab State Department who through the inept and misguided Condoleezza Rice, waved some Palestinian statehood vapors under his nose, weakening his will.

He, Olmert, and Abbas, all three incredibly unpopular, got together to enhance their images and maintain their relevance and power.

Compassionate Conservatism run amok?

He has lost his way? 

This last one is probably correct.  This President has been singularly disappointing in so many ways, with his liberal views on spending, immigration, education, entitlements, etc, why should anything he does surprise us?  But Bush diehards before, at least, knew their guy was tough on terror.  Nope.  Not any longer.  Out the window.  Like so much else with this President.  The man who has damaged his party and his nation with his liberalism, his misguided "compassionate conservatism," will now willingly undermine the one single strength he seemed to have.

Olmert is even more of a disaster for Israel than Bush has been for the US.  Israel, of course, has much less margin for error than the US. 

Let us hope for the failure of the false, phony "peace process" that will only weaken Israel. 

There is no peace now.  There will not be peace in the foreseeable future.  There will not be peace until Arabs accept the existence of a sovereign Jewish presence in their midst. 

Acceptance, by the way, does not mean mouthing platitudes (although that would at least be a start), but, for example, establishing diplomatic relations with Israel, ending the state of war that exists between the Arab/Moslem world and Israel, retiring the Arab boycott and trading with Israel, signing treaties with Israel, beginning regional dialogue and cultural exchanges including visits to Israel, welcoming Israeli business and technical know how into their respective nations, and stopping the indoctrination of their people through their state controlled media and educational system of hatred towards Israel and the Jews.  This will not happen anytime soon. 

But short of this, there is no true end of hostilities of Arabs/Moslems towards Israel, no willingness to accept a Jewish state or Israel's right to exist.  And without that how can there be peace?     

Until that day, there is only time for cold, steely eyed realism, resolve, economic strength and unmatched military power - and the willingness to use it.

But we can wonder, what ever happened to moral clarity and George Bush? 

(see related article on website for Feb. 17, 08; also: June 07, May 07, April 07, Dec 06, Aug 06, July 06)