HONOLULU -- When it comes to dealing with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, U.S. President George W. Bush's Sept. 12 speech to the United Nations General Assembly has finally put the ball back where it belongs: first in the U.N.'s and then in Baghdad's court . . . and how the former acts will largely determine how Hussein and ultimately the Bush administration responds.
This time last year, the world had rallied behind the United States in the wake of the horrific Sept. 11 attacks. The White House's initial response solidified that support. It was deliberate, carefully thought out and fully coordinated with a growing international coalition that saw almost all the nations of the world contribute in some manner to the war on terrorism's initial prosecution. Much of that support and good will has been squandered, however, as the administration (or at least many of its more vocal hawks) seemed to take their eye off the ball in their eagerness to spread the war in Iraq's direction.
Bush's management style seemed to allow loose cannons to fire at will as hawks and doves engaged in an increasingly public debate over Hussein's fate. "Regime change" (which one should recall was a stated objective of the Clinton administration as well) became synonymous with military action that, in turn, became synonymous with a U.S. march on Baghdad -- one that many uninformed members of the media were declaring to be imminent, despite the lack of approved war plans or combat and logistic support forces on the ground. It took Bush far too long to remember that he had been elected not just to manage but also to lead.