WriterDom
Good to the last drop
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2000
- Posts
- 20,077
Will operation Infinite Justice be underway? The Brits have a large force in the area already. I think we are still a few days away.
Bush to Speak to Congress, Nation
By RON FOURNIER
.c The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush is not going to seek a declaration of war or announce a military strike is under way when he addresses a joint session of Congress on Thursday night. Instead, he will ask Americans for their ``patience and reason'' as he mounts a long, unrelenting war against elusive terrorists.
One goal is to lower expectations for a quick response to the Sept. 11 attacks on Washington and New York that killed thousands and shook the nation to its core.
``This is not a speech to announce military action,'' National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice told reporters Wednesday. ``The president has made very clear that he intends to be patient, that he is going to review his options, that he is going to look for ways to be effective in whatever it is that we do, and we are now launched on a long campaign.''
In his address to Congress, set for 9 p.m. EDT, Bush is expected to make the case against Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida network, but probably not in great detail, officials said. He wants to explain, as he has in public remarks all week, that the terrorists are a freedom-hating radical minority of Muslims, spread across the globe and tough to catch.
``I look forward to the opportunity to explain to the American people who would do this to our great country,'' Bush said. ``And why.''
Officials won't say when the U.S. plans to strike, nor do they expect Bush to do so Thursday night.
The president has pledged to strike nations that harbor terrorists, which open Afghanistan to possible military action because of its ties to bin Laden.
Beyond that, Bush has put other countries that harbor terrorists on notice that they could be hit in future assaults if they don't change their ways. Senior administration officials say Iraq falls into that category, noting that several members of the war-planning team hope to target Saddam Hussein down the line.
``You have to be able to demonstrate to states that might harbor terrorists that that's not going to be a good thing to do in the future,'' Rice said.
Bush also plans to warn Americans of the sacrifices ahead, perhaps even mentioning the likelihood of casualties. He will discuss a series of specific steps that need to be taken to prepare Americans in the event of another terrorist attack.
With the attack threatening the nation's already sagging economy, Bush is expected to call for an economic stimulus package and tout legislation aiding the ailing airline industry.
He is asking Congress to give airlines $5 billion in immediate cash aid plus help with their insurance costs, but not the loans the industry said it needed to avert bankruptcy. Aides also say Bush will spend $3 billion of the emergency funds Congress gave him over the weekend to pay for airline and airport security improvements such as fortified cockpits, sky marshals and additional airport searches.
``The president will take this opportunity to make a case to the American people of why we are entering this long struggle and to understand better its nature,'' Rice said. ``This is not something that is going to be over in a matter of months.''
The high-stake address drew comparisons to Franklin Roosevelt's address to Congress after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Rice welcomed the comparison, if only to explain why Bush's war will be so much different.
``In that case we had a country, with a capital, with marching armies and beaches to storm and islands to take, and in the last war deserts to cross. That is not the nature of this war,'' she said.
``I think he will use (the speech) as an opportunity to urge patience and reason and to demonstrate, again, that his resolve is going to be over a long period of time , not in a single moment,'' Rice said.
Bush to Speak to Congress, Nation
By RON FOURNIER
.c The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush is not going to seek a declaration of war or announce a military strike is under way when he addresses a joint session of Congress on Thursday night. Instead, he will ask Americans for their ``patience and reason'' as he mounts a long, unrelenting war against elusive terrorists.
One goal is to lower expectations for a quick response to the Sept. 11 attacks on Washington and New York that killed thousands and shook the nation to its core.
``This is not a speech to announce military action,'' National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice told reporters Wednesday. ``The president has made very clear that he intends to be patient, that he is going to review his options, that he is going to look for ways to be effective in whatever it is that we do, and we are now launched on a long campaign.''
In his address to Congress, set for 9 p.m. EDT, Bush is expected to make the case against Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida network, but probably not in great detail, officials said. He wants to explain, as he has in public remarks all week, that the terrorists are a freedom-hating radical minority of Muslims, spread across the globe and tough to catch.
``I look forward to the opportunity to explain to the American people who would do this to our great country,'' Bush said. ``And why.''
Officials won't say when the U.S. plans to strike, nor do they expect Bush to do so Thursday night.
The president has pledged to strike nations that harbor terrorists, which open Afghanistan to possible military action because of its ties to bin Laden.
Beyond that, Bush has put other countries that harbor terrorists on notice that they could be hit in future assaults if they don't change their ways. Senior administration officials say Iraq falls into that category, noting that several members of the war-planning team hope to target Saddam Hussein down the line.
``You have to be able to demonstrate to states that might harbor terrorists that that's not going to be a good thing to do in the future,'' Rice said.
Bush also plans to warn Americans of the sacrifices ahead, perhaps even mentioning the likelihood of casualties. He will discuss a series of specific steps that need to be taken to prepare Americans in the event of another terrorist attack.
With the attack threatening the nation's already sagging economy, Bush is expected to call for an economic stimulus package and tout legislation aiding the ailing airline industry.
He is asking Congress to give airlines $5 billion in immediate cash aid plus help with their insurance costs, but not the loans the industry said it needed to avert bankruptcy. Aides also say Bush will spend $3 billion of the emergency funds Congress gave him over the weekend to pay for airline and airport security improvements such as fortified cockpits, sky marshals and additional airport searches.
``The president will take this opportunity to make a case to the American people of why we are entering this long struggle and to understand better its nature,'' Rice said. ``This is not something that is going to be over in a matter of months.''
The high-stake address drew comparisons to Franklin Roosevelt's address to Congress after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Rice welcomed the comparison, if only to explain why Bush's war will be so much different.
``In that case we had a country, with a capital, with marching armies and beaches to storm and islands to take, and in the last war deserts to cross. That is not the nature of this war,'' she said.
``I think he will use (the speech) as an opportunity to urge patience and reason and to demonstrate, again, that his resolve is going to be over a long period of time , not in a single moment,'' Rice said.
