Bush: No retreat until win in terror war
NAMPA, Idaho, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- President Bush vowed Wednesday in Idaho he would not retreat from Iraq or the rest of the Middle East until U.S. troops "win the war on terror."
The president, who was speaking to a gathering of the Idaho National Guard, is on a three-day swing to try to garner support for his Iraq policy, which has been flagging in the polls.
"We will stay on the offense," Bush said to applause. "We'll complete our work in Afghanistan and Iraq. An immediate withdrawal of our troops in Iraq, or the broader Middle East, as some have called for, would only embolden the terrorists and create a staging ground to launch more attacks against America and free nations. So long as I'm the president, we will stay, we will fight, and we will win the war on terror."
The president thanked the Guardsmen for their service, and even referred to his own controversial service in the Texas Air National Guard, something he rarely mentions.
"I don't know if you know this or not, but 19 individuals have served both as Guardsmen and as president of the United States," Bush said. "And I'm proud to have been one."
Insurgents launch Baghdad attacks
BAGHDAD, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Up to 40 insurgents launched coordinated strikes against police checkpoints in western Baghdad Wednesday, leaving at least six people dead, reports said.
The insurgents, armed with rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, fired on Iraqi police checkpoints as they drove by in cars, CNN and The New York Times reported.
The dead included two police officers, one insurgent and three civilians. At least 31 were injured. At least two insurgents were in custody.
Also Wednesday, Deputy Justice Minister Awshoo Ibrahim escaped an assassination attempt when gunmen fired on his convoy in Ghazaliya, Iraq, and killed four of his guards.
A suicide bomber killed at least seven people in Baghdad Tuesday, including a U.S. soldier and contractor, reports said.
Robertson admits Chavez assassination call
WASHINGTON, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- U.S. televangelist Pat Robertson apologized Wednesday for calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
Robertson touched off a controversy with his remarks, delivered Monday on his Christian Broadcasting Network program "The 700 Club."
He said earlier Wednesday his remarks had been taken out of context. However, a tape of "The 700 Club" featured Robertson saying: "If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it."
Later Wednesday, CNN reported Robertson issued a statement apologizing for his remark.
"Is it right to call for assassination? No, and I apologize for that statement," said Robertson.
Robertson claimed Chavez was trying to make Venezuela "a launching pad for Communist infiltration and Muslim extremism all over the continent." Robertson said publicity surrounding his remark had focused the U.S. government's attention on the problem.
Chavez dismissed Robertson's words, but Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel strongly condemned them and called on President Bush to take some sort of legal action.
Chavez, the democratically elected president of Venezuela, was almost removed in a 2002 coup attempt.
Chavez accuses the United States of being involved. The Bush administration denies the allegation.
Base closures include Fort Monmouth, N.J.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- A federal commission voted Wednesday to close military installations including Fort Monmouth, N.J., but overruled the Pentagon on Northeast naval facilities.
The nine-member Base Closure and Realignment Commission began its deliberations on Pentagon proposals to shutter more than 800 military installations to save $49 billion during the next 20 years, the Washington Post and New York Times reported.
Among closures the panel approved: Fort Monroe in Virginia, Forts Gillem and McPherson in Georgia and Pascagoula Naval Station in Mississippi.
The commission voted to shut major Army bases in Georgia and Michigan and nearly 400 Army Reserve and National Guard facilities.
However, the panel overruled the Pentagon in voting to keep the Navy submarine base in Groton, Conn., and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, open.
The hearing touched on concerns about how closures would affect operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and domestic security.
Votes will not be considered firm until final commission deliberations Saturday. The recommendations go to President Bush, who with Congress can accept or reject the package.
