New York Journal News: Bush's resolve made U.S. more secure
If, after Sept. 11, 2001, President Bush told us that by 2004, Saddam Hussein would be rotting in a jail cell and a pro-American Iraqi prime minister would take his place, I would have thought it was an impossible dream. If, in the fall of 2001, the president promised to crush the Taliban and have a democratically elected leader in Afghanistan by fall 2004, I would have thought it was a long shot at best.
If the president made a post-9/11 prediction that Moammar Gadhafi, a career terrorist and murderer of Americans, would voluntarily give up his nuclear program to get on America's good side, I would have been skeptical. If, after 9/11, President Bush vowed that there would not be another terrorist attacks on American soil during his term, I would have said he was too optimistic.
The reality is that all of these things have happened and the world that spawned the 9/11 hijackers has been radically altered in a way that makes it more difficult for terrorists to perpetrate attacks on the United States. The policies, determination, and resolve of the Bush administration deserve much of the credit for these homeland securing accomplishments. Clearly, re-electing President Bush over a candidate without any anti-terrorism credentials to speak of is the best way to continue making us safer.
(Kieran Michael Lalor, a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, is the founder and executive director of the Eternal Vigilance Society. For more information, visit www.eternalvigilancesociety.org)
For the New York Journal News
Kieran Michael Lalor
October 31, 2004
Section: OPINION
Page: B08