President George W. Bush predicted the result of withdrawing troops from Iraq too early with eerie precision, says his former chief speechwriter, Marc Thiessen.
On July 12, 2007, Bush took to the podium to answer critics of his order for a troop surge.
Acknowledging that some Americans wanted an immediate withdrawal from Iraq, Bush said that to do so before military commanders said it was time would be dangerous for Iraq, the region, and the United States.
"It would mean surrendering the future of Iraq to al-Qaida," Bush said at the time. "It would mean that we'd be risking mass killings on a horrific scale. It would mean we allow the terrorists to establish a safe haven in Iraq to replace the one they lost in Afghanistan. It would mean increasing the probability American troops would have to return at some later date to confront an enemy that is even more dangerous."
Thiessen, who is now a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, crafted that statement and appeared on Fox News Channel's
"The Kelly File" on Thursday to discuss it.
"Every single thing that President Bush said there in that statement is happening today," Theissen said.
President Barack Obama did withdraw troops before the commanders on the ground said they were ready to do so, he said, leaving none behind when military officials suggested 20,000.
"President Bush said that if we did that there would be mass killings on a horrific scale," Theissen said. "What are we seeing? Mass killings on a horrific scale: executions, women and children being buried alive, crucifixions, beheadings of American journalists."
The Islamic State (ISIS), the successor to al-Qaida in Iraq, currently controls a swath of territory the size of Belgium, Thiessen said.
The United States is hitting ISIS with limited airstrikes in Iraq, with some saying boots on the ground may be needed. ISIS is headquartered in Syria, and Obama is being urged by many in both parties to hit ISIS targets there.
"The surge worked against every prediction of the experts," Thiessen said, "and al-Qaida in Iraq [now ISIS] was defeated."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.