Blame is a hot potato these days, ain’t it?

In a nationally televised address, Bush acknowledged for the first time that he had not sent enough troops to provide security in Iraq last year. Standing in the library of the White House, he described the situation in Iraq as “unacceptable” to the American people and to himself. “Our troops in Iraq have fought bravely. They have done everything we have asked them to do,” he said. “Where mistakes have been made, the responsibility rests with me.”

*snip*

In some of his sharpest language to date, the president placed the responsibility of improving conditions squarely on the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has not delivered on an array of promised reforms and security measures.

“I have made it clear to the prime minister and Iraq’s other leaders that America’s commitment is not open-ended,” Bush said last night. “If the Iraqi government does not follow through on its promises, it will lose the support of the American people — and it will lose the support of the Iraqi people. Now is the time to act.”

Y’know, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think that Bush was applying a standard to al-Maliki that he rejects when applied to himself…

  1. Broken promises?  Does “we won’t torture” ring a bell?  How about “these loosened-up rules on enemy combatants will not be applied to US citizens”, remember that one?
  2. If you assume that support for the war itself amounts to support for the current Iraqi government — which is illogical, but more than likely how Bush is thinking about it — then that support is in the mid 30’s.  How far down does it have to go before it’s “lost”?
  3. Speaking of support, how much does he think he has left?

To get back on “support of the Iraqi people” for a moment: define “Iraqi people”.  Those elections that were raved about amounted to official sanction of sectarian violence, that there are gov’t agents playing both sides of the fence is no shock.  It’s got support alright, but as a glorified death squad — “some are more equal than others” an’ all that…