Bush resolute in face of Iraq death toll

President vows to make sure American lives not 'lost in vain'



President Bush pledged Monday to ensure “an
outcome that will merit the sacrifice” of those who have died in Iraq,
offering both sympathy and resolve as the U.S. death toll in the
five-year war hit 4,000.


“One day, people
will look back at this moment in history and say, ‘Thank God there were
courageous people willing to serve because they laid the foundation for
peace for generations to come,’ “ Bush said at the State Department
after a two-hour briefing on U.S. diplomatic strategy around the world.
“I vow so long as I am president to make sure that those lives were not
lost in vain.”


The president
received another two-hour briefing earlier Monday at the White House on
Iraq, this one from Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, and
Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, via secure video hookup from
Baghdad. Petraeus and Crocker are due to testify on Capitol Hill on
April 8-9.

The deaths of four U.S. soldiers in a roadside
bombing late Sunday in southern Baghdad pushed to 4,000 the number of
American service members killed as the war enters its sixth year.

Grim
milestones usually go unremarked upon by Bush. But he chose on this
occasion to note the losses, albeit briefly and without taking
questions from reporters.




A message for families


“On this day of reflection,
I offer our deepest sympathies to their families,” the president said.
“I hope their families know that citizens pray for their comfort and
their strength, whether they were the first one who lost their life in
Iraq or recently lost their life in Iraq.”

The White House
said Bush is likely to embrace an expected recommendation from Petraeus
for a halt in troop withdrawals beyond those already scheduled to be
completed by July, with the expectation that reductions would resume
before the president leaves office in January. Bush also is to receive
a briefing on Wednesday at the Pentagon “on what actions his advisers
recommend for cementing those gains and taking action that will lay the
foundation for further additional troop drawdowns,” White House press
secretary Dana Perino said.

Petreaus believes a so-called pause in drawdowns, lasting a month or two, is needed to assess the impact of the current round.

Perino said that
Bush sees “some merit” in that idea. “I think that’s not unlikely,” she
said. She said Bush is under “no deadline” to make a decision about
troop levels before leaving next week for a NATO summit in Romania.

Bush himself has
hinted in recent speeches that he supports Petraeus’ position. But he
did not tip his hand at all during his remarks Monday.



“Our
strategy going forward will be aimed at making sure that we achieve
victory and therefore America becomes more secure,” he said, adding
that it is important that these “young democracies survive” as the 21st
century progresses.
With the war entering its sixth year, Bush has
been making the argument that defeating extremists in Iraq makes it
less likely that Americans will encounter enemies at home. Iraq has
taken a heavy toll on his presidency, contributing to Bush’s low poll
ratings.


The U.S. has
about 158,000 troops in Iraq. That number is expected to drop to
140,000 by summer in drawdowns meant to erase all but about 8,000
troops from last year’s increase, widely referred to in official
Washington circles as a “surge.”

Perino had said
earlier Monday that Bush spends time every day thinking about those who
have lost their lives in battle and has “grieved for every lost
American life.” Families of the fallen soldiers often tell the
president that they want him to complete the mission in Iraq, she said.

“He bears the
responsibility for the decisions that he made,” Perino said. “He also
bears the responsibility to continue to focus on succeeding.”

Vice President
( No Swearing ) Cheney, in Jerusalem to push the Mideast peace process, said the
4,000th American death in Iraq may have a psychological impact on the
American public.

“You regret
every casualty, every loss,” he said. “The president is the one that
has to make that decision to send young men and women into harm’s way.
It never gets any easier.”



Pelosi: Cost of war 'is unacceptable'

House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi said Americans are asking how much longer their troops
must sacrifice for an Iraqi government “that is unwilling or unable to
secure its own future.”

“Americans also understand that the cost of
the war to our national security, military readiness and our reputation
around the world is immense and that the threat to our economy — as the
war in Iraq continues to take us deeper into debt — is unacceptable,”
Pelosi said.


Sen. Hillary
Rodham Clinton, vying for the Democratic presidential nomination, told
a campaign audience in Pennsylvania that she would honor the fallen by
ending the war and bringing home U.S. troops “as quickly and
responsibly as possible.” Her rival for the nomination, Sen. Barack
Obama, said “It is past time to end this war that should never have
been waged by bringing our troops home, and finally pushing Iraq’s
leaders to take responsibility for their future.”