In his new book, Bob Woodward does a 180-degree turn from his previous writings and provides fresh fodder for skeptics to question the Bush administration’s handling of the war in Iraq.
Woodward has written two previous books that gave generally positive accounts of administration efforts since Sept. 11, 2001. His new volume, “State of Denial,” isn’t so generous. Woodward describes President Bush as being in denial about the true situation in Iraq and his advisers as squabbling and divided.
The book reportedly is flying off the shelves, pumped up perhaps by early pieces in the Post, Newsweek, The New York Times and CBS’ “60 Minutes” broadcast.In large measure it seems to confirm what many Americans have already concluded: The war was started on faulty premises, and its conduct was hampered by some critical miscalculations.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld comes across as a stubborn and arrogant figure, disengaged from the “nuts and bolts of occupying and reconstructing Iraq,” who refused to return calls to then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice until told to do so by Bush. White House chief of staff Andrew Card is said to have twice tried to persuade the president to dump Rumsfeld, once with the encouragement of First Lady Laura Bush, before Card himself left the administration. Card has quibbled with Woodward’s description but said he proposed replacing Rumsfeld. Mrs. Bush’s office denies she pushed for Rumsfeld’s replacement.
Woodward writes that six months after the invasion, the White House ignored an urgent warning from Robert D. Blackwill, the National Security Council’s top official for Iraq, that thousands more troops were needed to quell the insurgency.
He also writes that in the months before Sept. 11, Director of Central Intelligence George J. Tenet believed that Rumsfeld was impeding the effort to develop a coherent strategy to capture or kill Osama bin Laden. Rumsfeld questioned intelligence from terrorism suspects, wondering whether it might be part of an elaborate deception plan by al-Qaeda.
On July 10, 2001, the book says, Tenet and a top aide met with Rice at the White House to emphasize the seriousness of intelligence the agency was collecting about an impending attack. Both men were said to come away feeling she had not taken the warning seriously. Rice said Monday she had no recollection of the meeting.
In recent speeches, the president has sought to portray his policies as essential for fighting terrorism and winning the war in Iraq. Now Woodward – who had been so enraptured of administration efforts in his previous books – has given Americans a very different narrative to consider.
