Bush* Speeches Avoid Setbacks, Look Ahead [View All]

[kskiska]

President's Broad Remarks Focus on Job Creation Instead of Attacks in Iraq

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Bush was surrounded by cranes in the warehouse of a family-owned rental business, on a set the White House had designed for a speech highlighting economic recovery.

"The enemy in Iraq believes America will run. That's why they're willing to kill innocent civilians, relief workers, coalition troops. America will never run. America will do what is necessary to make our country more secure," he said to a standing ovation.

Bush did not take questions from reporters. He glared at a Birmingham newspaper reporter who, not observing the usual protocol, shouted as Bush walked from Air Force One to his limousine, "How long will U.S. troops be in Iraq?"

The day's rhetoric, and the potential incongruity of emphasizing his six-point plan for job creation at a time when bloodshed in Iraq was dominating headlines and newscasts, reflected the White House's challenge as Bush tries to avoid letting setbacks in Iraq drown out a campaign message designed to exude optimism.

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The White House has tried to avoid associating Bush with problems in Iraq. Instead, the strategy calls for him to frame hostilities there in the larger context of a global war on terrorism.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59775-2003Nov3.html