Former US President George W Bush recently made a mistake as he sought to condemn Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. He slammed and said that the “brutal invasion of Iraq by one man” was “unfair” when it actually meant “the invasion of Ukraine by Russian President Vladimir Putin”. Ironically, when the US-led coalition invaded Iraq in 2003, the Bush administration was in power.
Bush was speaking at an event on the importance of democracy and threats to democracy in the US and abroad.
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Alleging that democracy in Russia is a farce, George W. Bush said: “Russian elections are rigged.” “Political opponents are imprisoned or otherwise eliminated from participating in the electoral process. The result is the absence of checks and balances in Russia and the decision of one man to launch a completely unfair and brutal invasion of Iraq. I mean Ukraine is,” he said.
George W. Bush: “One man’s decision to launch a totally unfair and brutal invasion of Iraq—I mean Ukraine—Iraq too.”
Freudian slip if I ever saw one! He told the truth once! pic.twitter.com/BavmfkWTyN
— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) 19 May 2022
He quickly murmured under his breath, “Iraq, too,” adding, “Anyway, 75,” referring to his age.
The United States led a coalition, which included the United Kingdom, Australia, and Poland, and invaded Iraq in 2003. George W Bush and Tony Blair, who were then President and Prime Minister of the US and UK respectively, stated that their aim was to “disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, end Saddam Hussein’s support for terrorism and Iraqi freeing the people”. However, a UN inspection team had found absolutely no such weapon before the attack began.
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Bush was criticized by many for the invasion and wanted him to find a diplomatic solution. Some of America’s allies, such as France, Canada, Germany and New Zealand, also opposed the Iraq War.
Bush’s mistake gave his critics gunpowder to mock the former US president. Former Ohio State Senator Nina Turner said: “Freudian slip if I’ve ever seen one! He once told the truth!” “George W. Bush admits to being a war criminal of choice for Vladimir Putin, then laughs. Sick,” she tweeted.
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Former member of the US Congress Justin Amash said: “If you were George W. Bush, you’d think you’d avoid making any speech about a man launching a totally unfair and brutal assault.”