Apparently Richard W. Stevenson didn’t get the message regarding idiotic statements in the post-Raines Times:
President Bush opened his African tour today with a forceful denunciation of America’s slave-holding past and a pledge to work more closely with African nations to help them build a prosperous and peaceful future.
But the limitations of his promise of more engagement were on display from the first hours of his visit. After meeting with West African leaders here, the president said that the United States would participate in their efforts to bring stability to war-ravaged Liberia but stopped short of committing American troops to a peacekeeping operation.
As usual, the Times staff knows more than anyone else- clearly they have decided the only option in Liberia is the committment of US Troops. Screw what the UN thinks, to hell with the Pentagon, to hell with the foreign policy advisors in the administration and the State Department. The NY Times says to commit troops- anything short of that should be seen as Bush hedging on his committment to help and work with Africa.
Jerks. These guys will do anything to attack Bush.
*** Update ***
Comapre the Guardian’s coverage of the same visit, in this article titled “Bush May Send U.S. Troops to Liberia.”