Threatener-in-Chief Fails To Follow Through and Deliver

[bigtree]

'hard work', though . . .


Bush credibility hurt by hollow threats

Country overextended by global crises.

By TOM RAUM of The Associated Press
Saturday, September 2, 2006

WASHINGTON - As the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks nears, President George W. Bush is finding it increasingly difficult to make good on foreign-policy promises or threats. The biggest source of his frustration is the "axis of evil" - Iran, North Korea and Iraq - that he warned four years ago imperiled world peace.

Some analysts suggest Bush has overreached, or set the bar impossibly high, laying out goals he cannot achieve - while not acknowledging blunders.

"Spreading democracy, eradicating terrorism, ending Iran’s nuclear potential: Those are huge goals. When one makes an assessment and sees that none of these is closer to being achieved, it becomes a real problem for America’s credibility," said Shibley Telhami, a Mideast scholar at the University of Maryland.

Bush asserted earlier this summer, "You know, the problem with diplomacy: It takes a while to get something done. If you’re acting alone, you can move quickly." Ever since, diplomacy has only gotten harder.

more: http://www.columbiatribune.com/2006/Sep/20060902News014.asp

[knowbody0]

1. when you only have to be diplomatic with yourself

you can move more quickly. HOLY CRAP! how the hell did he acquire that thinking process?