Some Iraqis saw Bush’s visit to Baghdad two days ago as political.
“He came for only two hours. He didn’t see how the Iraqis are living and suffering,” said Fatima Star, 38, a housewife. “He doesn’t care about the Iraqi people. He only cares about his troops.”
“He wants to gain political favor from people in the United States before the elections,” said Mathil Aziz, 26, a teacher. “He cares more about his own personal interest than the Iraqi people.”
But any visit with Iraqis would have been a security nightmare. No reasonable person should truly expect the president of the United States to casually walk around a war-torn nation experiencing daily terrorist attacks. The secrecy in which the Thanksgiving Day visit was conducted should be evidence enough for Bush’s Iraqi detractors.