Bush feels the heat as criticism mounts

President George W. Bush looks up during opening remarks while visiting Wootton High School in Rockville, Maryland on Tuesday. Bush encouraged schools nationwide to invite veterans to visit to serve as "examples of duty and courage in times when both are sorely needed."

WASHINGTON - Criticism of the Bush administration's handling of the war against terrorism at home and abroad is mounting, suggesting that the president's post-September 11 honeymoon may be coming to an end.

So far, most of the grumbling has been confined to policy analysts and media pundits and has not affected the soaring approval ratings that President George W. Bush has enjoyed since the September 11 hijacking attacks on New York and Washington that killed around 5,000 people.

"There's always a time lag. Criticism during major extended crises usually begins among opinion leaders and activists and then seeps slowly and gradually into the public," said American University historian Allan Lichtman.

"The American people are usually willing to support their leader during a crisis for a relatively long time, which is crucial because Bush will not be able to sustain a serious campaign without the support of the American people," he said.

Criticism so far has centered on four key areas:

- the military campaign in Afghanistan is getting bogged down and not progressing toward the desired results of capturing or killing Saudi militant Osama bin Laden, whom the administration accuses of orchestrating the September 11 attacks, and toppling his Afghan protectors of the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban.

- the United States is soft-pedaling its military strikes in a futile attempt to keep lukewarm Arab support; meanwhile it is losing the propaganda war in the Islamic world.

- the administration is mishandling the anthrax threat.

- Bush is supporting an attempt by Republicans in the House of Representatives to award billions of dollars in retroactive tax rebates to wealthy corporations, under the guise of an economic stimulus package.

Feeling the heat

Time magazine in its cover story this week declared: "Fighting elusive foes at home and abroad, President Bush and his team are feeling the heat."

A New York Times poll published on Tuesday found the first stirrings of public discontent on several fronts. Half of the 1,024 respondents said the government was not telling people everything they need to know about the anthrax outbreak.

Only 18 per cent believed the government could protect them from terrorism, compared with 35 per cent three weeks ago; only 28 per cent were very confident the US could capture or kill bin Laden; only 29 per cent were very confident the United States could hold together its international alliance.

University of Texas political scientist Bruce Buchanan, who has studied public opinion during previous major foreign policy crises that went wrong, such as the Iran hostage crisis in 1979 and the Bay of Pigs in 1961, said the rally-around-the-flag effect usually lasted around 30 weeks.

"We're nowhere near that point yet so I would expect support for Bush to remain high for several months. However, he has to start showing results at some point," he said.

Criticism of the military operation began to be voiced publicly last week and has grown since then, with conservatives leading the charge.

In Tuesday's Washington Post, columnist Charles Krauthammer wrote: "The war is not going well and it is time to say why. It has been fought with half-measures. It has been fought with an eye on the wishes of our 'coalition partners.' It has been fought to assuage the Arab 'street.' It has been fought to satisfy the diplomats rather than the generals."

Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's response has been to ask for patience and dismiss criticism as being driven by the demands of media outlets.

"I hear some impatience from the people who have to produce news every 15 minutes, but not from the American people. I think the American people understand the fact that it's going to be long and hard," he said on Sunday.

The charge that the administration has mishandled its public relations effort in the Arab world was perhaps best voiced by former UN ambassador Richard Holbrooke.

"A mass murderer operating from a cave in southern Afghanistan appears to be winning a public affairs, public diplomacy battle with the world's communication leader, the United States," he said.

Drumbeat of criticism

The administration has made efforts to streamline its information efforts at home and recover from a stumbling start in handling the anthrax crisis. But the deadly bacteria keeps showing up in buildings.

"We don't know from day to day. We get one piece of information and the next there is a contradiction or modification. And that in itself creates its own source of panic," said Senator Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat.

Potentially the most damaging element for Bush is the House tax giveaway to corporations, many of which contributed to Bush's 2000 presidential campaign. That legislation is likely to die in the Senate but could still come back to haunt Bush.

"Bush will run into most criticism on issues like this, where people perceive him as a politician rather than as commander-in-chief," said University of St Louis political scientist Joel Goldstein.

Mid-term elections, where control of both the House and Senate are up for grabs, are exactly one year away. The historical precedents for Bush are not uniformly rosy. For instance, in 1918, when the United States was fighting relatively successfully in World War I, then-President Woodrow Wilson's Democrats lost control of both houses of Congress. Two years later, they lost the White House as well.

Catholic University political scientist Mark Rozell said Bush needed to be concerned.

"Even if public support isn't weakening at this point, a constant drumbeat of criticism from opinion leaders and the media will eventually translate into loss of public support," he said.

(Agencies via Xinhua)