WP,pg1: U.S. Policy Against 'Axis of Evil' Foundering

[DeepModem Mom]

U.S. Policy Against 'Axis of Evil' Foundering
By Peter Baker and Dafna Linzer
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, August 17, 2005; Page A01


President Bush's campaign against what he once termed the "axis of evil" has suffered reverses on all three fronts in recent days that underscore the profound challenges confronting him 3 1/2 years after he vowed to take action.

First, multilateral talks orchestrated by the United States to pressure North Korea to give up nuclear weapons adjourned last week after 13 days without agreement. Then Iran restarted its program to convert uranium, in defiance of the United States and Europe. Finally, negotiators in Iraq failed to draft a new constitution by Monday's deadline amid an unrelenting guerrilla war against U.S. forces.

None of these developments may be fatal to Bush's policy goals, but the quick succession of setbacks has left his national security team privately discouraged and searching for answers. Whereas Bush in his first term vowed to reinvent foreign policy with a new doctrine of military preemption to deal with rogue states, he has largely dropped such talk since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Instead, he has favored diplomacy with Tehran and Pyongyang and nation-building with Baghdad -- yet the old-fashioned improvisation has yielded similarly murky results.

Administration officials publicly have put the best face on the situation, finding hope in the fact that Iraq's sectarian leaders remain at the negotiating table and that neither Iran nor North Korea has ruled out further talks. Unlike in Iraq two years ago, U.S. officials note, this time they are working more or less in tandem with European and Asian allies.

"These are difficult issues," national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley said in an interview last week after the Iran and North Korea setbacks. "They're going to take some time. But the main thing is to keep the international community focused."...


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/16/AR2005081601451.html

[librechik]

1. when you try to build a gazebo out of horseshit

it doesn't surprise me

[bemildred]

8. Yeah, when was it not foundering?

When did it show any result at all?
Remember Bolton bloviating over and over at the N. Koreans while they called Bush names?
It was a crock to start with.

[wli]

2. also note the recent North Korea/South Korea detente n/t

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. "None of these developments may be fatal to Bush's policy goals

Maybe none or maybe all. This author is very quick to hedge his bets. Fuck the author of this.

[ninkasi]

4. Chavez isn't very pleased with him either.

I think we can agree that everything Bush touches turns to shit. The author of this article might not realize, or be willing to admit, the Chimp's real policy, which is to grab everything he can of value for himself and his cronies.

[saigon68]

5. Its all about the Benjamns for the Bush Criminals

[bpilgrim]

6. "the profound challenges confronting him" FUCK HIM!!! he's on vakay - 24/7

it is confronting US - america - when the hell are we gonna get rid of these CRIMINALS, you know they are planning another 911 and after that they will be UNTOUCHABLE :argh:

peace

[leftchick]

7. kick

:kick: