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A speech that failed

President Bush could have used the 9/11 anniversary to rekindle a sense of national purpose. Instead he delivered political rhetoric.

For most Americans, the fifth anniversary of 9/11 became a time for reflection. Time has not healed our sense of loss, and the ceremonies and the television specials brought a flood of emotions that don't lie far beneath the surface. President Bush struck the appropriate tone for much of the day, making low-key visits to the crash sites and beginning his address to the nation by acknowledging the courage of the victims and rescuers.

But then the president squandered an opportunity to speak candidly to the nation about where we are headed in an uncertain world. Instead, he used the somber occasion to make another political speech that sounded out of touch with reality. While Bush has been forced to concede that Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks, he used the anniversary of a national tragedy to continue to argue that Hussein posed a risk that had to be eliminated and declared that the world is safer because he has been ousted. That simply does not reflect what we can see and feel ourselves.

Bush then proceeded to describe an Iraq as an upbeat work in progress, where democracy is growing and self-sustained security is just around the corner. But his assessment is at odds with the more somber evaluations from our military leaders. The American people aren't buying the president's spin, because they read daily accounts of secular violence, watch the death toll rise, and plainly see that the future of Iraq remains very much in doubt despite our soldiers' best efforts.

Bush described the war on terrorism as "the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century, and the calling of our generation." He may well be right. But while we are mired in Iraq, the Taliban are mounting a resurgence in Afghanistan. America's standing in the world has fallen since the warm embrace immediately after 9/11. And while Bush continued to vow to remain in Iraq as long as it takes, his comparisons to World War II and the Cold War ring hollow. The enemy remains elusive, the battle lines are blurred and a definition of victory doesn't exist.

The president seized the moment and united this country immediately after the 9/11 attacks with his genuine empathy and steady resolve, first through a bullhorn at the smoldering World Trade Center site and then before a historic joint session of Congress. The mistakes and miscalculations by his administration in the five years since have been well documented. But Bush had another opportunity Monday night to rise to the occasion and use the 9/11 anniversary to start rekindling the spirit and sense of purpose that has been lost. Instead, he disappointed Americans hoping for clarity and direction, offering only familiar rhetoric and a view of the world that does not match reality.

[Last modified September 13, 2006, 01:55:53]