Article: Hitler's Bulge -- Bush's Surge

In the November elections in 1932, Adolf Hitler's National Socialist Party lost 34 seats in the Reichstag, leaving the Nazis in the minority with the support of only one-third of the voters. However, after frantic political maneuvering and threats of riots, the interim government failed and Hitler was appointed Chancellor on January 31, 1933.

In the November 2000 presidential election, more than a half million Americans cast their vote for Al Gore than for George W. Bush; however, irrespective of the popular vote, a candidate has to have a majority in the Electoral College to win. Although Gore was ahead by 20 electoral votes, Bush was ahead by 327 popular votes in Florida, and Bush needed Florida's 25 electoral votes to overtake Gore. Fortunately, Bush's brother was the governor of Florida and his state campaign manager was the Secretary of State. Gore filed a lawsuit to compel a manual recount in the four counties where he enjoyed the greatest support, and the Florida Supreme Court agreed to a partial recount to determine the "intent of the voters." However, Bush appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court where a majority, appointed by Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr., overruled the Florida justices, denied a recount, and appointed Bush as president over the wishes of a majority of the American people.

On February 27, 1933, a leader of Hitler's S.A. movement led a squad of storm troopers through a tunnel from Goering's palace into the Reichstag building and set a fire that destroyed the building. The Nazis immediately arrested a retarded Dutch communist, blamed him for setting the fire, and started a wholesale roundup of political opponents. The next day a decree was issued suspending those sections of the constitution that guaranteed individual and civil liberties. Even though the Nazis commenced a massive propaganda campaign, and a majority again voted against him in new elections held in March, Hitler pushed through an "enabling act" granting him exclusive legislative power for four years. Two years later the Prussian Supreme Court ruled that the Gestapo was not subject to judicial review and that, "As long as the police carries out the will of the leadership, it is acting legally."

Following his inauguration, Bush ignored outgoing President Clinton's advice that his "top priority" should be Osama bin Laden, and he refused to consider the comprehensive plan prepared by Richard Clarke, the White House Chief of Counterterrorism, to destroy the al Qaeda network. Bush paid no attention to more than 40 briefings of threats involving al Qaeda, including one entitled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S.," and specific warnings by the Israeli Mossad that al Qaeda members were infiltrating the United States for a major assault. On the morning of September 11, 2001, while Bush was reading to school children and posturing for the cameras, the United States suffered the most serious attack on its homeland since the British burned Washington D.C. in the War of 1812. Although all of the hijackers were almost immediately identified, the FBI was quickly ordered to close its investigation. Rather than seek the truth, Bush: (1) reversed the presumptions governing Freedom of Information Act requests; (2) pushed through the USA Patriot Act allowing secret "sneak and peek" search warrants, secret "national security letters," and electronic search warrants without probable cause;" (3) authorized eavesdropping on American's international telephone and e-mail communications; (4) authorized military surveillance of American citizens; (5) signed secret directives allowing prisoners, including American citizens, to be held without trial or access to attorneys and to be tortured; (6) commenced building secret "detention" centers in the U.S.; (7) secretly kidnaped foreign nationals and confined them in secret prisons around the world; and (8) defied the will of Congress by making more than a hundred "signing statements," which nullified legislation without a veto.

Although the vast majority of the German people were opposed to war, Hitler positioned his troops along the Polish border, and personally issued orders on August 31, 1939 for an attack on Poland to commence the next day. To provide an excuse for the planned invasion, S.S. troops dressed in Polish Army uniforms staged a fake attack on a German radio station at Gleiwitz and left dead concentration camp inmates dressed in civilian clothes at the scene as "casualties." Hitler launched his "Blitzkrieg" at daybreak, France and England declared war, and the slaughter began.

Bush's immediate priority upon taking office was the removal of Saddam Hussein, and following the 9-11 attack, he was determined to invade Iraq. Bush began to manufacture false evidence that Iraq was allied with al Qaeda and that it was in possession of weapons of mass destruction, and he created a broad-based publicity campaign to convince the American public that his lie was the truth. Bush secretly began to bomb Iraq's communications and radar infrastructure, and finally, even though UN and IAEA inspectors were unable to find any evidence of "unresolved disarmament issues," Bush ordered the "shock and awe" invasion of Iraq.

Germany achieved initial successes in Hitler's war, sweeping across country after country; however, the tide reversed with the entry of the United States after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Following successful invasions of North Africa and Italy, the allies landed three million troops in Normandy in June 1944 and sealed the fate of Germany. On the eastern front, even though Hitler had forbidden surrender, Stalingrad fell to the Russians with the deaths of almost 200,000 German soldiers and capture of almost 100,000 prisoners. Caught in the vice, German troops began a steady retreat toward their homeland.

Even though Bush swaggered around a carrier deck bragging that the "mission was accomplished" in May 2003, three-and-a-half years later, his war drags on with no end in sight. More than 650,000 Iraqis have died, tens of thousands have been imprisoned without trial and many have been tortured, more than 3,000 American soldiers have been killed in combat, and more than 22,000 have been wounded. A sectarian civil war now rages throughout Iraq, and its corrupt "government" is incapable of governing. Virtually all Iraqis want the American troops to leave immediately, and 72 percent of American soldiers agree.

As 1944 neared its end and the allied forces continued their relentless advances, Hitler suffered a mental and physical breakdown and his normally terrible temper gave way to hysterical rages. In an attempt to force a negotiated peace, Hitler ordered a secret offensive on the western front in Belgium in the Ardennes forest. Even though his scheme was opposed by his generals, Hitler drew upon all of the remaining reserve strength of the German army, including boys and elderly men, and launched the attack on December 16, 1944. The initial German attack caught the U.S. First Army by surprise and succeeded in driving a dent or "bulge" in the Allied front. Following some of the bloodiest fighting in World War II, the Germans were repulsed with the loss of 800 tanks, 1,000 aircraft and 100,000 casualties. The German Army's ability to defend the homeland was destroyed.

From the time he was an adolescent, Bush was a high-risk game player who hated to lose. If he was losing, he would demand that points be played over, the rules be changed, or the limits of the game extended. In his war, Bush gambled that he could secure access to Iraq's oil and replace its leader with someone more acquiescent to the aims of his constituency, the oil barons and multinational corporations, and he ridiculed anyone who disagreed. Bush was narrowly reelected in 2004 (again aided by electronic voter fraud and intimidation), and he has resolutely "maintained the course" in Iraq, even though 2006 was the bloodiest year for the Iraqi people and American troops since the first year of the war. Attempts to retake control of Baghdad by increasing the number of troops led to more being wounded and killed, and to even greater hatred of the U.S. by the Iraqis.

Finally awaking to the tragedy visited upon the nation by Bush, the American people soundly renounced his war during the November 2006 elections. Two-thirds of the American people favor withdrawal of troops from Iraq, Democrats took control of both houses of Congress, and the bipartisan Iraq Study Group recommended a phased withdrawal from Iraq and increased diplomatic dialogue with Syria and Iran. Even though he has lost the "game," Bush is now changing the rules. Ignoring the will of the American people, the wishes of the Iraqi government, and the advice of his generals, Bush has decided to "surge" another 21,500 troops into Iraq. He fired his Secretary of Defense, his top commander in Iraq and the leader of the U.S. Central Command, all of whom argued against sending more troops. Bush replaced them with individuals who will support his "surge" into Iraq and threatened invasions of Iran and Syria. His plan is to embed American troops, including many reservists and national guardsmen, in Iraqi deployments and to have them occupy Baghdad neighborhoods on a 24/7 basis. Given the fact that the Iraqi prime minister has little or no interest in the success of Bush's plan and the lack of a clear mission and chain of command, it is inevitable that American casualties will soar and very likely that America's military power will be broken. Untold lives will be lost before America is forced to retreat to its homeland, to the universal distrust and hatred of much of the world's population, and as an economic hostage to the lenders who have financed Bush's war.

As the Allied troops began to converge on Berlin, Hitler lost all self-control and began to scream at his generals with his eyes seeming to pop out of his head. Drug addicted, shaking uncontrollably and drooling, Hitler continued to ignore the advice of his generals and ordered the destruction of all military, industrial, transportation and communications installations and stores in Germany. His "all or nothing" plan was to starve those Germans who survived their defeat, saying, "those who remain after the battle are only the inferior ones..."

Bush's inability to face reality about his war in Iraq results from his apocalyptic belief that God chose him to lead the world into the Battle of Armageddon, and his belief that his actions are facilitating the second coming of Christ. The war on terror is his personal crusade against radical Islam, which is opposed to America because of our love of freedom. He can't lose because God's on his side, the end of times is upon us, and we are heading into the last days of the final battle between good and evil. Bush seeks total earthly power, and he and Cheney have sought to create a cult dedicated to a powerful "unitary presidency" accountable to none, including the American people. Perhaps it would be different if his religious fervor was leading to a peaceful and united world; however, the truth is that Bush is a sadist, a paranoid megalomaniac, an untreated alcoholic who has no capacity to take responsibility for his behavior and no ability to comprehend the harm he is inflicting upon both the Iraqi and American people, and all of humanity.

History tells us that on April 30, 1945, with his Chancellery surrounded by Russian troops, Hitler shot himself in the mouth and his body was burned in the garden. One week later, Germany surrendered - unconditionally.

We don't have a crystal ball to predict the ending of Bush's war and the consequences of his ill-advised and stupid military blunders. It is doubtful he will commit suicide, and unlike Germany's total defeat after the Battle of the Bulge, the U.S. government will not collapse when Bush's surge fails - at least immediately. However, our creditors, primarily China, will hold multi-trillion dollar chits which our children will have to redeem, and we may never again regain the independence and respect we once enjoyed.

There is yet one more difference to be noted in this brief historical comparison between Hitler and Bush. Hitler was twice wounded and was awarded the Iron Cross for bravery for repeatedly carrying messages under fire along the front lines in World War I. Bush was a coward, who used his father's influence to avoid having to fight in the Viet Nam War, and, in his latest scheme to save face by sending more of our sons and daughters to their deaths, he remains without honor. History will not be kind to Bush, nor to us unless we act to stop him.