BUSH vs. REALITY
BUSH: Mixed messages are bad for our troops, efforts in war on terror.
REALITY
Mixed Messages on Winning the War on Terror
“Can’t Win The War On Terror†Asked “Can we win [the war on terror]?†Bush said, “I don’t think you can win it. But I think you can create conditions so that the – those who use terror as a tool are less acceptable in parts of the world.†[NBC, “The Today Show,†8/30/04]
Mixed Messages on Osama Bin Laden
QUESTION: Do you want bin Laden dead?
BUSH: I want justice. And there’s an old poster out west, that I recall, that said, “Wanted, Dead or Alive.†[Bush Remarks, 9/17/01, emphasis added]
BUSH: “And [Osama Bin Laden is] just – he’s a person who has now been marginalized. His network is — his host government has been destroyed. He’s the ultimate parasite who found weakness, exploited it, and met his match…So I don’t know where he is. Nor — you know, I just don’t spend that much time on him really, to be honest with you. I…I truly am not that concerned about him.†[Bush Remarks, 3/13/02]
Mixed Messages on Protecting the Homeland
Bush Thought Homeland Security Cabinet Position Was “Just Not Necessary†And Blocked Its Creation.  In October 2001, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said Bush opposed creating Office of Homeland Security position for Ridge. “[T]he president has suggested to members of Congress that they do not need to make this a statutory post, that he [Ridge] does not need Cabinet rank, for example, there does not need to be a Cabinet-level Office of Homeland Security is because there is such overlap among the various agencies, because every agency of the government has security concerns,” Fleischer said. [White House Press Briefing, 10/24/01]