http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/entertainment/14847443.htm

Sun, Jun. 18, 2006

'We have to stay in Iraq,' Soros says
George Rush and Joanna Molloy Star Talk

Billionaire George Soros spent a fortune trying to pry President Bush out of the White House. But the Democratic Midas agrees with the president that we can't pull out of Iraq now.

"Unfortunately, many countries have a national narrative that condemns them to keep on defending a cause that is really indefensible," the Open Society founder said Monday at the Core Club party for his book "The Age of Fallibility." "The Turks can't admit the massacre of Armenians, for example. We have been better in the past at recognizing our sins. I'm afraid that we have to recognize that was a terrible mistake.

"I can't expect President Bush to do that," Soros allowed. "That would be out of keeping for anybody. What's worse, I think we actually have to stay in Iraq for a while. If we left, we would have a conflagration. We are sitting on a civil war. Therefore, American soldiers have to continue giving their lives to a bad cause."

Soros said Bush was right to invade Afghanistan, because that "was where Bin Laden was located." He also conceded that, since pre-war Iraq was "a magnet for general terrorists," the U.S. occupation may "have deflected a terrorist attack" here. But Soros argued that, thanks to Bush's policies, "The danger of a terrorist attack is greater since 9/11. We may actually be growing terrorist cells."

P.S. Soros was downright courtly toward the Bushies compared with Sen. John Kerry's spokesman, David Wade, who snarled Tuesday at White House adviser Karl Rove for accusing Kerry and fellow Vietnam vet Rep. John Murtha of "cutting and running" from the war.

"The closest Karl Rove ever came to combat was these last months spent worrying his cellmates might rough him up in prison," said Wade. "This porcine political operative can't cut and run from the truth any longer. When it came to Iraq, this administration chose to cut and run from sound intelligence and good diplomacy.... In November, Americans will cut and run from this Republican Congress."