Bush on Farewell Visit to Iraq Dodges Flying Shoes

Iraqi reporter calls president ‘dog’ and hurls shoes at him, sullying farewell visit to Baghdad meant to mark greater security in Iraq after years of bloodshed

President George W. Bush reacts after a man threw two shoes at him during a news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2008. (Photo credit: Evan Vucci / AP)

 
Dec. 14, 2008

BAGHDAD — An Iraqi reporter called U.S. President George W. Bush a “dog” and threw his shoes at him on Sunday, sullying a farewell visit to Baghdad meant to mark greater security in Iraq after years of bloodshed.

Just weeks before he bequeaths the unpopular Iraq war to President-elect Barack Obama, Bush sought to underline improved security by landing in daylight and venturing out beyond the city’s heavily fortified international Green Zone.

He declared the war “not over” despite recent gains.

In a sign of lingering anger over the war that will define the Republican president’s foreign policy legacy, an Iraqi journalist shouted in Arabic “this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog,” and hurled his shoes at Bush during a news conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

An Iraqi man throws a shoe at President George W. Bush during a news conference with Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2008 in Baghdad. (Photo credit: Evan Vucci / AP)

Throwing shoes at somebody is a supreme insult in the Middle East. One of the shoes sailed over the president’s head and slammed into the wall behind him and he had to duck to miss the other one. Maliki tried to block the second shoe with his arm. …

Asked whether he had come to Iraq on a victory lap, Bush said: “No, I consider it an important step on the road toward an Iraq that can sustain itself, govern itself and defend itself.”

“There’s still more work to be done. The war is not over.” …

It will now be left to Obama, a Democrat and early opponent of U.S. military involvement in Iraq, to sort out an exit strategy after he takes office on January 20. …

Conflict in Iraq video

Bush receives size-10 reminder of unpopularity (MSNBC, Dec. 14, 2008) — On an Iraq trip shrouded in secrecy, President George W. Bush hailed progress in the war that defines his presidency, but got a stark reminder of his unpopularity when a man hurled two shoes at him during a news conference. (03:35)

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Analysis

Bush’s Iraq trip highlights war unwon

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