WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush will participate in a wreath-laying ceremony Tuesday morning at Arlington National Cemetery in observance of Veterans Day, reflecting on sacrifices being made by U.S. soldiers stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and honoring soldiers of wars past.
On Veterans Day just one year ago, Bush was threatening to commit the "full force and might" of U.S. military against Saddam Hussein unless he quickly disarmed. This year, the administration finds itself empty-handed in the search for these weapons of mass destruction.
And daily attacks against remaining troops have pushed the U.S. death toll to nearly 400, with more than half of those since the president declared an end to major combat operations on May 1.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Tuesday the United States has sufficient forces on the ground and that he wouldn't hesitate to recommend more if necessary.
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(AP) President Bush arrives on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington after returning from...
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"That's a fair question and one that I ask almost weekly," he said on CBS's "The Early Show."
When he queries commanders about whether they have enough troops, Rumsfeld said, "every single military leader in Iraq answers that question, 'Yes.'"
"We're now at a point where we have as many or more Iraqi security forces as American security forces in Iraq," he said. "Needless to say, if at any moment the military commanders indicated that they needed more troops, I would certainly recommend it to the president. But the advice we're getting is just the opposite."
Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on NBC"s "Today" program, "There is no more noble cause than the one that is being fought right now in Iraq and Afghanistan by the members of our armed forces."
Bush's national security adviser Condoleezza Rice on Monday acknowledged an upsurge in violence, especially in the so-called "Sunni Triangle" encompassing Baghdad, Fallujah and Tikrit.
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(AP) President Bush delivers remarks at the Bush-Cheney 2004 campaign reception at the Palmetto Expo...
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But she said the administration's No. 1 strategy is to increase the number of Iraqis involved in their own security. She said there are now 118,000 trained Iraqi security forces.
Rice denied that major combat operations have resumed.
"What has happened is there are some elements of the old regime that are making common cause with some foreign fighters in what I think could classically be described as an insurgency or insurgency plus terrorism," Rice told NBC News affiliate KING.
Secretary of State Colin Powell told students at City College in New York on Monday night that "for the sake of civilization, for our security, we must stay the course" in Iraq.
"There is no question we are being tested," Powell said, but "we will win - of that there is absolutely no doubt in my mind."
Also Tuesday, Bush was signing the Fallen Patriots Tax Relief Act, which doubles the tax-free death gratuity payment given to the families of fallen soldiers from $6,000 to $12,000; and the National Cemetery Expansion Act to help establish new national cemeteries for deceased veterans in southeastern Pennsylvania and in and around Birmingham, Ala., Jacksonville and Sarasota, Fla., Bakersfield, Calif., and Greenville and Columbia, S.C.
There are an estimated 19 million veterans in the United States, and about 1,500 die each day. With an aging World War II generation, the Veterans Affairs Department estimates the number of veterans dying is expected to peak at 687,000 in 2006.
After making remarks at Arlington, Bush planned to discuss Iraq in a speech at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, an event sponsored by the conservative Heritage Foundation.
