Bush Cites Iraq the Model Blog

There has been an ongoing controversy about who might really be behind (or at least, supporting) the Iraq blog, Iraq the Model. As noted in this linked article, even Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Ca) was suspicious after two of the original three brothers (one bowed out after feeling like an American propaganda tool, which he felt put his family's lives in danger) who own that blog were guests of the White House in 2004.

So, it's not surprising that during a speech Bush gave today to the Cattleman's Association (in which his Texas drawl was very exaggerated for the cowboy crowd), he used that blog's views as an example of "success" in Iraq.

"I want to share with you how two Iraqi bloggers -- they have bloggers in Baghdad just like we got here -- (laughter) -- describe -- 'Displaced families are returning home. Marketplaces are seeing more activity. Stores that were long shuttered are now reopening. We feel safer about moving in the city now. Our people want to see this effort succeed. We hope the governments in Baghdad and America do not lose their resolve.'"

That's exactly the kind of message ITM puts out every day. That could be written off as just being optimism on the part of a couple of Iraqis who just want everything to turn out well and who really do believe that the American occupation is the best path. One has to wonder however, why out of all of the bloggers in Iraq, that one is the most connected to the White House and is the darling of the warbloggers who defiantly reject any criticism of the blog or the occupation.