Published: May 01, 2008 09:50 pm      

Byrd blasts Bush over ‘misson accomplished’

Five years ago Thursday, President Bush stood on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln to pronounce an end to major combat operations in Iraq, putting a “mission accomplished” label on the war.

On the eve of that anniversary, Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., arguably the most vocal opponent of the conflict, took Bush to task, saying his remarks on the Abraham have proved “wildly premature and dangerously naive.”

In fact, the senator said, more than 97 percent of the 4,000 troops killed since his speech were killed in Iraq.

“President Bush has said that history will judge him on his decision to go to war in Iraq,” he said.

“I say that history is already delivering its verdict. It is evident in the strains of the long and multiple deployments that are wearing down our mighty military and in the suffering of the American people as they bury their fallen heroes. It is evident in the fear and distrust with which the rest of the world views us, and in the instability wracking the Middle East, Iraq and Afghanistan as a result of the Bush policies.”

Byrd said the president failed to exercise any foresight or planning for what the Iraqi conflict has turned into and accused Bush of using the Navy ship as a backdrop for political gain.

“Five years ago, I took issue with the president’s choreographed political theatrics because I believed that our military forces deserved to be treated with respect and dignity, and not used as stage props to embellish a presidential speech,” the senator said.

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com