Bush speech

I didn't watch the President last night, but I've read the transcript.

Nothing in the speech contradicts what I wrote here this past week. The situation on the ground remains quite precarious, substantial new resources are going to be required, and the US would very much like to garner international support in the form of cash, troops and political cover. Or, as Warren Zevon (RIP) once sang, "Send Lawyers, guns and money. The sh** has hit the fan." [I'm new to this, did I promise not to curse when I joined the blogosphere?]

Stephen Zunes of University of San Francisco and Foreign Policy in Focus has written a quick and dirty assessment of the President's words. While I think he's over the top now-and-then, his review is generally accurate.

Supposedly, I'll be quoted in tomorrow's Daily Tar Heel. A young reporter called today and talked with me about US policy in Iraq for around 15 minutes. Based on past experience, that probably means she'll quote me once or twice.

During a week when many Americans will be recalling 9/11, it is not surprising that the President framed the war on Iraq as part of the larger war on terrorism. However, I don't think he's off the hook concerning the weapons of mass destruction. Blair certainly isn't.

Stay tuned.