Reply #24: NYT: Bush, Facing Dissent, Jettisons 'Stay The Course'

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http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/24/world/middleeast/24policy.html?hp&ex=1161662400&en=ea22729b6dbcc421&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Bush, Facing Iraq Dissent, Jettisons ‘Stay the Course’
By JIM RUTENBERG and DAVID S. CLOUD
WASHINGTON, Oct. 23 — The White House said Monday that President Bush was no longer using the phrase “stay the course” when speaking about the Iraq war, in a new effort to emphasize flexibility in the face of some of the bloodiest violence there since the 2003 invasion.

“He stopped using it,” said Tony Snow, the White House press secretary. “It left the wrong impression about what was going on and it allowed critics to say, ‘Well, here’s an administration that’s just embarked upon a policy and not looking at what the situation is,’ when, in fact, it is the opposite.”

Mr. Bush used the slogan in a stump speech on Aug. 31, but has not repeated it for some time. Still, Mr. Snow’s pronouncement was a stark example of the complicated line the White House is walking this election year in trying to tag Democrats as wanting to “cut and run” from Iraq, without itself appearing wedded to unsuccessful tactics there.

Democrats have increasingly pressed a case this fall contending that Republicans are stubbornly proposing to “stay the course” in a failing effort to stanch violence in Iraq — an approach that strategists in both parties consider to have been fairly successful, especially as violence has continued to mount in Baghdad.

In the last few weeks a number of Republican lawmakers and party elders have also come forward to express doubts about whether the administration’s approach to stabilizing Iraq is succeeding and to suggest new strategies.

Mr. Bush and his aides have met those complaints with a renewed emphasis on adaptability for the United States’ war plan. Mr. Bush has stressed — as he did in an interview with ABC News on Sunday — that he is “not patient forever” and expects the Iraqis to take more responsibility in securing their own country.

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