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Bush's Speech
With Tucker Eskew
White House Director of Global Communications
Friday, May 2, 2003; 3:45 p.m. ET
What did you think of President Bush's speech to the nation? Where must the administration focus now that major combat operations have ended in Iraq? What implications will Bush's remarks have, both in the United States and abroad?
Tucker Eskew, White House Director of Global Communications, was online to discuss Bush's address to
the nation.
The transcript follows.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control
over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
Roswell, Ga.:
Can you tell us how the idea developed to
have the President fly to and give his
speech from an aircraft carrier?
Tucker Eskew: Hello from the White House. Thanks for having me...
As for the first question...
We've got a great team here at the White House that worked hard to make yesterday a success. I won't single any one person out in terms of the events - fact is, none of the visuals or settings or remarks would have worked if the sailors didn't feel a kinship with their Commander-in-Chief and vice versa.
Downtown Washington, D.C.:
Given that Bush I was brought down so severely by his failure on the domestic front, how advisable was it for the President to make this speech from the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln. History has shown that a President cannot rely on foreign policy to win an election or even maintain a decent popularity margin. What do you say to those who criticize the President's focus on foreign issues? Perhaps we need leadership at home just as much, if not more, than abroad.
Tucker Eskew: Hello Downtown:
The President went to greet our returning troops, to thank them for their service, to declare their part of the mission successful, and to make clear to the nation and the world that hard days are behind us, some hard days lie ahead, but great progress has been made in the fight against terror and in the means of waging war against tyrants rather than the people who suffer under them.
That's a message any Commander-in-Chief would be proud to deliver and one most Americans understand and appreciate.
I don't accept your broad attack on the President's domestic accomplishments, but there's certainly more to do on that front (just as there's more to do internationally). These are challenging times, but America is up to it. The President is working on the economy today, as he has - in ways visible and less so - every day.
Rockville, Md.:
It seems that some of the President’s critics will never cut you guys a break. If the President mentions the economy, or judicial appointees in the same speech he talks about the war on terrorism he is criticized for politicizing the war; if he doesn’t talk about the economy he is criticized for ignoring it. What do you do about that?
Tucker Eskew: Focus on results. Stick to our message and the President's bold plans. Don't get too bogged down in the nitpickers and naysayers (while always staying on our toes and trying to avert or manage crises).
Good news is, most Americans (especially those away from the elite media-centric coastal cities) "get" it...For one thing, they see this President as the genuine article - a plainspoken hard-working real leader.
Morristown, N.J.:
Not a questions, just a comment.
I thought Bush was great last night. I particularly liked the sentence:
"No device of man can remove the tragedy from war; yet it is a great moral advance when the guilty have far more to fear from war than the innocent."
It's a great line that is probably making a few regimes nervous.
Tucker Eskew: It's a huge accomplishment to be able to exercise America's might in pursuit of great goals in a way that limits the tragic effects of war.
One result, everyone would hope, is that we have greater leverage to prevent threats to our security, and that of our allies - hence, a greater chance of avoiding war.
Chicago, Ill.:
How do presidential speeches get written? How many people work on the text? How involved in President Bush at editing or changing the copy? Thank you.
Tucker Eskew: It varies somewhat , but in general , especially for major addresses, it starts with Presidential direction to the speechwriters, led by Mike Gerson. They get ideas and input and re-writes from their colleagues (especially Dan Bartlett and Karen Hughes). Then, the President again sets the direction, adds and makes changes. An accurate description of his hands-on approach can be found in Woodward's "Bush At War."
Arlington, Va.:
Isn't it a bit early to be championing success when seven military personnel were wounded in yesterday in a grenade attack and there are anti-American riots in the streets all over the country? Perhaps we are jumping the gun a bit.
Tucker Eskew: It *would* be early to close the book, so he didn't -- the President said that hard days and difficult events surely lie ahead. But we can say that a major chapter (the 'battle' in Iraq: the intense war-fighting) has concluded. It's important for the man who made the decision to take the opportunity to note what happened, to mark the major doctrinal and technological shifts embodied in that battle, and most of all, thank a group of sailors who just spent 10 long months at sea defending freedom.
Somewhere, USA:
While no one would doubt that Saddam Hussein was a very bad person, and did horrible things, there is a long list of such people heading other countries in the world. Are we going to take them out, too? If not, why not? And if we are, is that really the best role for the United States in the world?
Tucker Eskew: Fortunately, we also have a "long list" of tools to deal with tyrants and dictators, as well as the terrorists they comfort or supply. As the President said, war is the last option. It is any President's hardest decision ,so long before it's made there comes the hard work of multilateral diplomacy (as regarding North Korea), law enforcement, contstraining terrorist financing, and special operations (all of which relate to our continuing -- and slowly but surely successful -- efforts to stop al Qaeda.
Tucker Eskew: Back to work. Thanks for having me, good luck.
TE
washingtonpost.com:
That wraps up today's show. Thanks to everyone who joined the
discussion.
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