Under Fire, Bush Vows 'No Retreat' from Iraq
By Randall Mikkelsen </FONT>
ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - President Bush on Tuesday vowed "there will be no retreat" from Iraq as he sought to defend the U.S. occupation amid a mounting death toll and growing criticism.
"Retreat in the face of terror would only invite further and bolder attacks," Bush said at the annual convention of the American Legion war veterans group. "There will be no retreat. We are on the offensive against the Saddam loyalists, the foreign fighters, and the criminal gangs that are attacking Iraqis and coalition forces."
He spoke as the killing of a U.S. soldier in Iraq on Tuesday pushed the death toll to 139 for the period since May 1, when Bush declared major fighting over. That is greater than the U.S. toll of 138 dead from the start of the war to May 1. The figures reflect deaths from combat and non-hostile causes.
New doubts about the U.S. mission were fueled by the bombing last week of U.N. headquarters in Iraq, which killed 23 people.
The reconstruction of Iraq after the ouster of Saddam Hussein would require "substantial" time and money, Bush said.
He said he would seek to recruit more countries to join the U.S.-led occupation coalition -- although a new U.N. mandate on Iraq has stalled. Bush also said he would work with Congress to provide the needed resources for the occupation.
HELPING PREVENT ATTACKS ON AMERICA
Congressional sources say the White House was considering seeking $2 billion to $3 billion extra to shore up reconstruction efforts in the near term.
Bush told the group that post-Saddam Iraq had become a battleground against militant networks, and that by fighting against militant groups in Iraq and other foreign countries, American forces were helping prevent attacks within the United States.
"Terrorists are gathering in Iraq to undermine the advance of freedom," Bush said. "And the more progress we make in Iraq, the more desperate the terrorists will become."
"Our military is confronting terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan and in other places so our people will not have to confront terrorist violence in New York or St. Louis or Los Angeles," he said.
Critics, however, have said the Iraq war stimulated recruitment by militant groups and said the U.S. mission had become unclear.
Reflecting the views of many Democrats and the concern of some Republicans, U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia urged Bush to abandon what he described as a go-it-alone Iraq policy and give other countries "real participation" in Iraq's reconstruction.
"Our military action in Iraq has forged a caldron of contempt for America, a dangerous brew that may poison the efforts of peace throughout the Middle East and result in the rapid invigoration of worldwide terrorism," Democrat Byrd said in a Washington Post opinion article.
By Randall Mikkelsen </FONT>
ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - President Bush on Tuesday vowed "there will be no retreat" from Iraq as he sought to defend the U.S. occupation amid a mounting death toll and growing criticism.
"Retreat in the face of terror would only invite further and bolder attacks," Bush said at the annual convention of the American Legion war veterans group. "There will be no retreat. We are on the offensive against the Saddam loyalists, the foreign fighters, and the criminal gangs that are attacking Iraqis and coalition forces."
He spoke as the killing of a U.S. soldier in Iraq on Tuesday pushed the death toll to 139 for the period since May 1, when Bush declared major fighting over. That is greater than the U.S. toll of 138 dead from the start of the war to May 1. The figures reflect deaths from combat and non-hostile causes.
New doubts about the U.S. mission were fueled by the bombing last week of U.N. headquarters in Iraq, which killed 23 people.
The reconstruction of Iraq after the ouster of Saddam Hussein would require "substantial" time and money, Bush said.
He said he would seek to recruit more countries to join the U.S.-led occupation coalition -- although a new U.N. mandate on Iraq has stalled. Bush also said he would work with Congress to provide the needed resources for the occupation.
HELPING PREVENT ATTACKS ON AMERICA
Congressional sources say the White House was considering seeking $2 billion to $3 billion extra to shore up reconstruction efforts in the near term.
Bush told the group that post-Saddam Iraq had become a battleground against militant networks, and that by fighting against militant groups in Iraq and other foreign countries, American forces were helping prevent attacks within the United States.
"Terrorists are gathering in Iraq to undermine the advance of freedom," Bush said. "And the more progress we make in Iraq, the more desperate the terrorists will become."
"Our military is confronting terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan and in other places so our people will not have to confront terrorist violence in New York or St. Louis or Los Angeles," he said.
Critics, however, have said the Iraq war stimulated recruitment by militant groups and said the U.S. mission had become unclear.
Reflecting the views of many Democrats and the concern of some Republicans, U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia urged Bush to abandon what he described as a go-it-alone Iraq policy and give other countries "real participation" in Iraq's reconstruction.
"Our military action in Iraq has forged a caldron of contempt for America, a dangerous brew that may poison the efforts of peace throughout the Middle East and result in the rapid invigoration of worldwide terrorism," Democrat Byrd said in a Washington Post opinion article.
