GovernmentExecutive.com

President Bush on Tuesday sought support for his Iraq strategy before a friendly audience of veterans, while also pledging to correct the bureaucratic problems and substandard conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center that have hurt the care of wounded soldiers.

During a speech to the American Legion interrupted several times by applause, Bush emphasized that U.S. commanders need the "flexibility" to carry out their missions, a clear denunciation of congressional efforts to place operational and budgetary restrictions on the fiscal 2007 emergency supplemental spending bill.

Lawmakers have a "right" to express their opinions on the war, Bush said, but he warned against hamstringing operations. "They also have a responsibility to fund our warfighters," Bush said to a standing ovation.

Bush urged Congress to pass a clean spending bill without money for unrelated domestic programs. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., last week said she wanted to attach $4 billion for agriculture disaster relief, and other members want to attach non-defense-related money to the supplemental, which the military says it needs by April.

The president also reported that U.S. and Iraqi forces are beginning to make strides in securing Baghdad, a key goal of his new strategy. "It's still too early to judge the success of this operation," Bush said. "But even at this early hour there are some encouraging signs."

Three Iraqi brigades have been deployed to Baghdad, while U.S. and Iraqi forces have captured hundreds of extremists and located large weapons stockpiles, Bush said. Nonetheless, two suicide bombers today killed up to 90 people in Hillah, 60 miles south of Baghdad, according to news accounts.

On Monday, nine U.S. soldiers died in explosions north of Baghdad in the deadliest day for U.S. troops in nearly a month. Bush reiterated warnings against pulling out of Iraq too soon, stating that doing so would only spread a "contagion of violence" throughout Iraq and, ultimately, the Middle East. "For our country, this is a nightmare scenario," he said.

Addressing the Walter Reed scandal, Bush announced that former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan., and Donna Shalala, former President Bill Clinton's Health and Human Services secretary, will lead a bipartisan presidential commission in a comprehensive review of military health care. He also has directed Veterans Affairs Secretary James Nicholson to lead a Cabinet-member task force to examine the immediate needs at Walter Reed and other facilities.

The government has a "moral obligation" to provide veterans with adequate health services, Bush said, declaring the conditions at Walter Reed are "unacceptable" and are "not going to continue." Nicholson said his task force would report back to Bush within 45 days.

Meanwhile, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and other Senate Democrats called an afternoon news conference to accuse the Bush administration of a "massive failure" to provide care for soldiers wounded in Iraq.

The Democrats, according to talking points drafted for the event, planned to allege that the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments were not prepared to deal with traumatic brain injuries -- which senators called the "signature wound of the war." They also were prepared to say the administration provided inadequate treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Terry Kivlan contributed to this report.

COMMENTS

• The condition of Walter REED is not the exception but becoming the general rule in military health care. They say it’s to save money but being seen out in town at civilian health care facility is five times the cost of current. A thirty minute drive to the nearest hospital could be fatal in emergencies. The money being spent to change hospital to meet supposed requirements is over priced and usually has to be redone from the start. I have watched a person of upper management sit and watch contractors put in a wall for over 2 hours and get belligerent when he heard comments about the effects of the closing will have on the public. Of course closure has no effect on him either in care or pay. The upper management in most areas don't care what happens in that they know their jobs are secure and have no care about the people the lost of care will effect. This can be seen by the lack of notice being given to the local populace being affected. Patrick T. Conner MSgt USMC retired Posted March 7, 2007 10:47 AM
• “The president also reported that U.S. and Iraqi forces are beginning to make strides in securing Baghdad, a key goal of his new strategy. "It's still too early to judge the success of this operation," Bush said. "But even at this early hour there are some encouraging signs."” He has put forth the same bull for the last three years and has been wrong every time! It now is interesting that he is only concerned with Baghdad and not Iraq and he never mentions the real fight that is Afghanistan. Second, he is saying there is inadequate health care at Walter Reed. It is not the health care that was in question at Walter Reed, it was housing! The Generals at Walter Reed have been fired (whatever that means-hopefully they have been kicked out of the military after being demoted to the next lower grade for pension purposes). However, the generals that are failing in Iraq are not being fired. Are the White House and the DoD secretary missing something of real priority here? taxpayer Posted March 7, 2007 7:13 AM