BUSH: "You know, I hear a lot of talk about civil war...."

[BurtWorm]

BUSH: You know, I hear a lot of talk about civil war. I'm concerned about that, of course. And I've talked to a lot of people about it. And what I've found from my talks are that the Iraqis want a unified country and that the Iraqi leadership is determined to thwart the efforts of the extremists and the radicals and Al Qaida and that the security forces remain united behind the government.

And one thing is clear: The Iraqi people are showing incredible courage. The United States of America must understand that it's in our interests that we help this democracy succeed.

As a matter of fact, it's in our interests that we help reformers across the Middle East achieve their objectives. This is the fundamental challenge of the 21st century.

A failed Iraq would make America less secure.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/21/AR2006082100469.html?nav=rss_politics


Follow-up questions for Bush (which admittedly give him the benefit of the doubt that he actually knows or cares about the truthful answers, despite all evidence that he doesn't deserve such benefit):

Have you talked to Iraqis about it?

What evidence do you have that the majority of Iraqis--or even a significant amount of them--want a "unified country?"

What is "failure" in Iraq and how close is it to failing? How far is it from "succeeding?" What are the signs of "success" you're looking for?