Bushisms on the War in Iraq from 2006: George W. Bush's Interacted World

There is nothing more comforting to a nation at war than the reassurance that can only be provided by a strong and articulate leader. "There is nothing to fear but fear itself!" "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country!" "I want to be a war president. No president wants to be a war resident, but I am one."

Hold on- what was that last one? Ah! A Bushism! The utterances and ramblings of our 43rd president, George W. Bush, have become so prolific, provocative, and peculiar that they have earned themselves a catchy moniker and a place in the vernacular of our culture.

The list of Bushisms is exhaustive. Collections of our fearless leader's curious and confused ramblings abound on the Internet and in print. About.com's Daniel Kurtzman keeps an excellently up-to-date collection of Bushisms. With so many befuddled Bushisms out there, I have decided to narrow down some of his eck-a-lec-tic chatter.

As we enter the early days of 2007, let's pause a moment and reflect on some of George W. Bush's more profound "thoughts" about the war in Iraq.

2006 Bushisms on the War in Iraq: A Man With a Plan
"This business about graceful exit just simply has no realism to it at all." (George W. Bush, on speculation that U.S. troops could be withdrawn from Iraq, Amman, Jordan. November 30, 2006)

"You know, when I campaigned here in 2000, I said, I want to be a war president. No president wants to be a war resident, but I am one." (George W. Bush in Des Moines, Iowa. October 26, 2006)

"We're never been stay the course, George." (George W. Bush, attempting to distance himself from what has been his core strategy in Iraq for the last three years in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos. Oct. 22, 2006)

"You know, one of the hardest parts of my job is to connect Iraq to the war on terror." (George W. Bush in an interview with CBS News' Katie Couric. September 6, 2006)

"After the bombing, most Iraqis saw what the perpetuators of this attack were trying to do." (George W. Bush, on the bombing of the Golden Mosque of Samarra in Iraq. March 13, 2006)

2006 Bushisms on the War in Iraq: Because He Said So
"I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma because there is -- my point is, there's a strong will for democracy." (George W. Bush, in an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer. September 24, 2006)

"I would guess, I would surmise that some of the more spectacular bombings are done by al Qaeda suiciders." (George W. Bush, regarding the violence in Iraq, in Washington, D.C. August 21, 2006)

"The United States of America is engaged in a war against an extremist group of folks." (George W. Bush in McLean, Virginia. August 15, 2006)

"I can look you in the eye and tell you I feel I've tried to solve the problem diplomatically to the max, and would have committed troops both in Afghanistan and Iraq knowing what I know today." (George W. Bush in Irvine, California. April 24, 2006)

"I strongly believe what we're doing is the right thing. If I didn't believe it- I'm going to repeat what I said before- I'd pull the troops out, nor if I believed we could win, I would pull the troops out." (George W. Bush in Charlotte, North Carolina. April 6, 2006)

"No question that the enemy has tried to spread sectarian violence. They use violence as a tool to do that." (George W. Bush in Washington, D.C. March 22, 2006)

"I believe that a prosperous, democratic Pakistan will be a steadfast partner for America, a peaceful neighbor for India, and a force for freedom and moderation in the Arab world." (George W. Bush, mistakenly identifying Pakistan as an Arab country in Islamabad, Pakistan. March 3, 2006)

2006 Bushisms on the War in Iraq: Huh?
"It's bad in Iraq. Does that help?" (George W. Bush, after being asked by a reporter whether he's in denial about Iraq, in Washington, D.C. December 7, 2006)

"The only way we can win is to leave before the job is done." (George W. Bush in Greeley, Colorado. November 4, 2006)

"Anybody who is in a position to serve this country ought to understand the consequences of words." (George W. Bush in an interview with Rush Limbaugh. November 1, 2006)

"See, the irony is that what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit, and it's over." (George W. Bush, chomping on a dinner roll while talking about the Middle East crisis with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the G8 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia. July 17, 2006)

"Trying to stop suiciders- which we're doing a pretty good job of on occasion- is difficult to do. And what the Iraqis are going to have to eventually do is convince those who are conducting suiciders who are not inspired by Al Qaeda, for example, to realize there's a peaceful tomorrow." (George W. Bush in Washington, D.C. May 24, 2006)

"If the Iranians were to have a nuclear weapon they could proliferate." (George W. Bush in Washington D.C. March 21, 2006)