Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Yes, my friends, the troops, bless their little hearts, love nothing more than receiving turkey from scandal-plagued members of the Bush administration.
You may think Rumsfeld's Christmas Eve surprise looks a lot like Bush's Thanksgiving visit last year, but to me what it really resembles is the last time Rumsfeld attempted to rehabilitate his image by making a surprise visit to Iraq.
He did the same thing right after the Abu Ghraib scandal broke, remember? Here's a memory aid.
There are a couple of differences, however.
The AP says that Rumsfeld's most recent surprise visit was "shrouded" in "unusual secrecy" while his original surprise visit was only "shrouded in secrecy".
Also, although both trips seem to be politically motivated, while the last time the purpose of Rumsfeld's trip definitely wasn't "to throw water on a fire", this time "the purpose of the trip [was] to thank the troops and wish them a merry Christmas."
So, you know, that's that.
