Home > Window on Washington > Archives > 2007 > August > 22
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Bush backs Maliki
The White House is upset this morning about news reports indicating President Bush has softened in his support of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
In Quebec on Tuesday, Bush seemed to avoid voicing support for the embattled leaded of the embattled nation. The question arose in the wake of Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin’s Monday call for the Iraqi parliament to oust Maliki.
Bush said, “If the government doesn’t respond to the demands of the (Iraqi) people they will replace the government” and “That’s up to the Iraqis to make that decision, not American politicians.”
But he stopped short of what has been his usual support for Maliki, a fact noted in news reports. Those reports, spokesman Gordon Johndroe said today, were “misreported.” Johndroe said it was inaccurate to report “Bush backs away from Maliki, Bush is cool toward Maliki.”
Johndroe’s take: Bush was “reporting the facts” that Iraqis will determine Maliki’s future.
And Maliki’s reaction to the reports? “Our people in Baghdad,” Johndroe said, have reported that “Prime Minister Maliki knows where the president stands.”
“He knows we’re frustrated,” Johndroe said, adding, however, that Bush still thinks Maliki is the right person for the job.
Bush will talk about Maliki in a speech today at the Kansas City convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
“The president will reiterate his support for the prime minister,” Johndroe said. “The words may not be exactly the same but the position remains unchanged.
Permalink | |
