The Politics Of War

Whisked in secret to Iraq, Bush serves holiday dinner to the troops--boosting G.I. morale and showing he can still pull off a killer photo-op

Almost no one noticed when a large jet swooped over the military mess hall at the Baghdad airport last Thursday evening. The 1st Armored Division's big brass band was noodling through jazz standards like Take the A Train while 550 soldiers sat at refectory tables, looking hungry and impatient to return to their camps so they could call their families for Thanksgiving. Finally, L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. proconsul in Iraq, took the stage and asked if there was anyone in the room more senior than he who could read the President's Thanksgiving message to the troops. There was: George W....

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