1 Justification for War: A Comparative Study of How George W. Bush and Tony Blair Presented the Iraq War to Their Respective Citizens

Now this paper may seem a bit out of place in a publication on electoral strategies. The Iraq War enjoyed wide support in the United States and, to a lesser extent, in the United Kingdom for only a short period of time. However, in spite of all the controversies related to the war, both George W. Bush in 2004 and Tony Blair in 2005 secured re-election. Blair was even able to call early elections. In both cases, they presented the threat of Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein, in its worst possible light, using exaggeration and insinuations. They did this in a number of, often highly dubious ways, but one of the most important was through their rhetoric. Obviously, each man employs a staff of speech writers and so much – if not most – of what they say has not been written by them, although they have, presumably approved it in advance. An analysis, however, can still yield interesting insights particularly of a speech given by the head of government, for these addresses represent how the government wants their policy to be viewed. As such, they are centrepieces in the bid for media attention and a great deal of care is lavished on them. They are designed to have an influence on public opinion and, indeed, it is important to evaluate their degree of success in that domain. Both George W. Bush and Tony Blair had expressed interest in toppling Saddam, by military means if necessary, before 11 September 2001. At first glance, George W. Bush did not seem like an interventionist president. During the 2000 campaign he talked little about foreign affairs, except to mock ―nation-building ‖ and elements of Clinton’s policy. However, certain clues point towards a different orientation. Christopher Meyer, British ambassador to the United States from 1997 to 2003, has described a meeting with Bush in 1999, before he even announced his candidacy for the presidency. At this meeting, Bush gave a short speech ha l-