Man with rifle, machete arrested for threatening ex-President Bush
Man with rifle, machete arrested for threatening ex-President Bush Reuters

Former American President George W. Bush, who led the U.S.. invasion in Iraq, has stated that the rise of Islamic State (ISIS) has validated his fears that a total withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq will be detrimental to the U.S. interests and security.

Bush had forewarned this in 2009, but Obama pulled out all U.S. troops in 2011. That time, Bush delivered a prescient warning that "mass killings on a horrific scale" will follow if the U.S. troops have to vacate completely, reported Fox News. To a question, how he knew it, Bush said, one can understand from the dangerous nature of the enemy who kills thousands of innocents and beheads people because of their religion or a different point of view. He ISIS as a "group of idealogues who murder the innocent" just like the attackers on 9/11.

Defending his Iraq strategy, Bush said, the sacrifices of war veterans in Iraq or Afghanistan will never go waste as the world is better off now with Saddam Hussein and Taliban out of power. Endorsing the perception that Iraqi people failed to rebuild the country after the U.S. forces left, Bush said the recent U.S. military intervention clearly showed that "Iraqi people still needed help".

Lessons Learnt

According to Mr. Bush, America has learned the "lesson" that Iraqis are still not capable of providing for their security. Bush said Iraqi people have to decide how they want to live in peace. Bush said it may take time to build a long-term strategy to confront the ISIS and build democracy in states like Iraq. For Americans, the lessons of 9/11 World Trade Centre attack are still relevant and they cannot afford to lower the vigil. Bush said human conditions elsewhere always matter to U.S. national security.

Bush agreed with the current assessment that the U.S. should have left a residual force of 10,000 to 15, 000 troops in Iraq. But Bush refused to blame Obama and said all presidents have to make choices that right from their perspective.

Third Term

President Bush stepped down in 2009 with a lowest approval rating by any outgoing president, noted the MSNBC report. When George Bush left office, the rating was 22 per cent. But Bush's approval ratings have started rising and has equaled Obama's rating in June. This also fuelled speculations that a George Bush sibling namely Jeb Bush would make a White House run.