WASHINGTON — Three years after his “mission accomplished” speech on Iraq, President Bush declared Monday that another turning point had arrived with the establishment of a permanent government in Baghdad.
“We believe we’ve got partners to help the Iraqi people realize their dreams,” Bush said of the recent emergence of new Iraqi leadership. “They need to know that we stand with them.”
The president’s May 1, 2003, appearance on the USS Abraham Lincoln is one of his most indelible war-related images. Clad in a flight suit, he emerged dramatically from a Navy jet that screamed in for a landing on the carrier’s deck. Under a giant “Mission Accomplished” banner, Bush announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended.”
Though not declaring overall victory and warning of difficult work ahead, Bush’s speech was aimed at marking a pivot from invasion to reconstruction.
It didn’t turn out that way.
Violence in Iraq continued instead of ebbing. In the six weeks from the start of the invasion to Bush’s speech, 139 U.S. soldiers had died. In the three years since, as of Sunday, there have been an additional 2,258 U.S. military deaths in Iraq.
There have been three democratic elections in Iraq, with voter participation increasing each time. But it took four months of infighting to produce a slate of government leaders — expected to be finalized this month — representing Iraq’s major ethnic and political factions in a fragile unity. But reliable electrical power is scarce, petty corruption is rampant, and the government’s interior ministry is blamed for harboring death squads that are helping to drive sectarian violence.
Amid the difficulties, Bush’s overall approval rating has fallen to a new low.
Democrats cited the anniversary in criticizing the president.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan said some Democrats chose to ignore the importance of the unity government’s establishment. “There’s an effort simply to distract attention away from the real progress that is being made,” he said.
In Bush’s appearance outside the Oval Office with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, the president walked a fine line between celebrating achievements and warning of more sacrifices
With U.S. officials hoping the government’s existence will drain the insurgency and pave the way for an eventual drawdown of U.S. troop levels, Bush sent Rice and Rumsfeld to Baghdad last week to help boost the Iraqi leaders. The president said his top foreign policy officials reported back that the Iraqis understand the job ahead and are capable of fulfilling it
“We believe this is a turning point for the Iraqi citizens, and it’s a new chapter in our partnership,” Bush said. “This government is more determined than ever to succeed.”