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Published Thursday, January 12, 2007
The president delivered his first speech of 2007 this week, in which he admitted that some mistakes have been made in Iraq over the past five years, and called for more US troops to right them. The response by the Democrats ranged from skepticism to flat-out opposition, as conflict looms between Congress and the administration. At the same time, in Somalia, American bombers began air strikes in what the White House is calling a new front on terror.
Different sorts of battles raged elsewhere. Russia and Belarus duked it out over oil supplies, temporarily cutting off a much-needed energy source to Western Europe, while election protests in Bangladesh caused its beleaguered interim president to throw in the towel. In business, Apple CEO Steve Jobs staged an offensive against the formidable mobile-phone industry, announcing the launch of the iPhone — rocking markets six months before the gadget even hits stores.
In a televised address on Wednesday night, President Bush finally announced a new US strategy in Iraq, which includes sending 21,500 additional troops to Baghdad and Anbar province. Bush relies on Congress to implement the plan, but may find that approval is tough going — at a time when the American public tires of the costly war effort, Democrats have said they will oppose the $6.5 billion troop surge.
The president called the situation in Iraq "unacceptable" and admitted that mistakes had been made in the war strategy. Nearly four years after the US-led invasion ousted Saddam Hussein, 132,000 American troops are currently deployed in Iraq.
