2A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, December 1, 2005 NATION/WORLD Bush refuses to set exit schedule ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Presi- dent Bush gave an unflinching defense of his war strategy yesterday, refusing to set a timetable for U.S. troop with- drawals and asserting that once-shaky Iraqi troops are proving increasingly capable. Democrats dismissed his words as a stay-the-course speech with no real strategy for success. Bush recalled that some Iraqi secu- rity forces once ran from battle, and he said their performance "is still uneven in some parts." But he also said improvements have been made in training and Iraqi units are grow- ing more independent and controlling more territory. "This will take time and patience," said Bush, who is under intense polit- ical pressure as U.S. military deaths in the war rise beyond 2,100 and his popularity sits at the lowest point of his presidency. Bush's speech at the U.S. Naval Academy, the first of at least three he'll give between now and the Dec. 15 Iraqi elections, did not outline a new strategy for the nearly three- year-old war. Rather, it was intended as a comprehensive answer to mount- ing criticism and questions. Billed as a major address, it brought together in a single package the administration's arguments for the war and assertions of progress on military, economic and political tracks. The address was accompanied by the release of a White House docu- ment titled "Our National Strategy for Victory in Iraq" - a report that House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi dismissed as "35 pages of rhet- oric on old sound bites." Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass), called Bush's speech "lipstick" on a failed Iraqi strategy. "If things on the ground in Iraq are as rosy as the picture the president painted today, then we should be able to begin to bring our troops home in 2006," he said. Bush spoke to a friendly audience of midshipmen. They welcomed the president by singing him the Navy fight song. At the end, they chanted in unison, "Fire it up! Fire it up!" The president said the U.S. mili- tary's role in Iraq will shift from pro- viding security and fighting the enemy nationwide to more specialized opera- tions targeted at the most dangerous terrorists. "We will increasingly move out of Iraqi cities, reduce the number of bases from which we operate and conduct fewer patrols and convoys," the president said. Still, Bush remained steadfastly opposed to imposing a deadline for leaving Iraq. "Many advocating an artificial timetable for withdrawing our troops are sincere - but I believe they're sincerely wrong," Bush said. "Pull- ing our troops out before they've achieved their purpose is not a plan for victory." Senate Democratic leader Harry AP PHOTO A protester stands with a sign that reads, "Stay what course?" as one of the presidential helicopters arrives yesterday. Reid of Nevada called on the presi- dent to release a strategy that has military, economic and political benchmarks that must be met. "Sim- ply staying the course is no longer an option," Reid said. "We must change the course." Bush was ready for that. "If by 'stay the course' they mean we will not permit al-Qaida to turn Iraq into what Afghanistan was under the Taliban - a safe haven for terror- ism and a launching pad for attacks on America - they're right," Bush said. "If by 'stay the course' they mean that we're not learning from our experiences or adjusting our tactics to meet the challenges on the ground, then they're flat wrong." There are about 160,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. The Pentagon has not committed to any specific drawdown next year beyond the announced plan to pull back 28,000 troops who were added this fall for extra security dur- ing the election. NEWS IN BRIEF ~ JERUSALEM Peres quits to campaign for Sharon Bitter over his ouster as Labor Party chief, Shimon Peres quit his politi- cal home of six decades yesterday to campaign for Ariel Sharon's new party, saying the prime minister is the best choice to lead Israel to peace with the Palestinians. Peres's defection was an important coup for Sharon in the scramble by the major parties to recruit high-profile supporters during a political realignment the past three weeks as the country prepares for parliamentary elections in March. Many Israelis respect Peres, an 82-year-old former prime minister, as an elder statesman and peacemaker, but they remain wary of his dovish politics. His resignation from Labor could contribute to the view that he is a political opportunist. Peres also brings with him a reputation as a peren- nial loser at the polls who led Labor to five electoral defeats and lost a race this month to lead the party into a sixth election. WASHINGTON Alto advocates gradual Roe reversal As a young government lawyer opposed to abortion rights, Samuel Alito argued for a strategy of chipping away at the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing abortion rather than mounting an all-out assault like- ly to inflict a defeat on the Reagan administration, according to documents released yesterday. "No one seriously believes that the court is about to overrule Roe v. Wade;" the current Supreme Court nominee wrote in an internal Justice Department memo on May 30, 1985. Referring to a high court decision to review two abor- tion-related cases at the time, he asked, "What can be made of this opportunity to advance the goals of bringing about the eventual overruling ... and in the meantime, of mitigating its effects." The memo was among several hundred pages of documents dating from Ali- to's 1981-1987 tenure in the Justice Department, released on the day the Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case for the first time in five years. LYON, France Doctors in France perform facial transplant Doctors in France said they had performed the world's first partial face trans- plant, forging into a risky medical frontier with their operation on a woman disfig- ured by a dog bite. The 38-year-old woman, who wants to remain anonymous, had a nose, lips anrd chin grafted onto her face from a brain-dead donor whose family gave consent. The operation, performed Sunday, included a surgeon already famous for trans- plant breakthroughs, Dr. Jean-Michel Dubernard. "The patient's general condition is excellent and the transplant looks normal," said a statement issued yesterday from the hospital in the northern city of Amiens where the operation took place. Dubernard would not discuss the surgery, but con- firmed that it involved the nose, lips and chin. "We still don't know when the patient will get out," he said. A news conference is planned for Friday. BAGHDAD U.S. and Iraqi troops unite to sweep city U.S. and Iraqi troops launched a joint operation yesterday in an area west of Baghdad used to rig car bombs, while American soldiers rounded up 33 suspected insurgents in a sweep of southern parts of the capital. About 500 Iraqi troops joined 2,000 U.S. Marines, soldiers and sailors in a move to clear insurgents from an area on the eastern side of the Euphrates river near Hit, 85 miles west of Baghdad, the U.S. command said in a statement. In Saadah, eight miles from the Syrian border, Iraqi soldiers were seen questioning a man as he knelt on a carpet in his home, while U.S. Marines led blindfolded and handcuffed detainees along a dirt road to a waiting vehicle. The offensive came as President Bush said he hopes to shift more of the mili- tary burden onto the Iraqis as part of a strategy to draw down American forces. - Compiled from Daily wire reports CORRECTIONS Please report any error in the Daily to corrections@michigandaily.com. Glbe £idi uu JtIaQ 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1327 www.michigandaily.com JASON Z. PESICK JONATHAN DOBBERSTEIN Editor in Chief Business Manager pesick@michigandaily.com business@michigandaily.com 647-3336 764-0558 Sun.Thurs. 5 p.m. - 2 am. Mon-Fri. 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. I 40 Court sees first abortion case in 5 years New Hampshire law requiring parent notification before abortions in front of U.S. Supreme Court WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court wrestled yesterday with a New Hampshire law that requires a parent to be told before a daughter ends her pregnancy, with no hint the justices were ready for a dramatic retreat on abortion rights under their new chief. The court is dealing with its first abortion case in five years, as well as the first in the brief tenure of Chief Justice John Roberts. The case does not challenge the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that declared abortion a fundamen- tal constitutional right, and the justices seemed to be seeking a compromise that would avoid break- ing new ground. Several said the law was flawed because it requires that a parent be informed 48 hours before a minor child has an abortion but makes no excep- tion for a medical emergency that threatens the youth's health. At the same time, the court appeared unhappy with lower court decisions that blocked the law from being enforced at all. "This case doesn't involve an emergency situa- tion," Roberts said. The stakes are significant since the ruling could signal where the high court is headed under Rob- erts and after the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Abortion was a prominent subject in Roberts's confirmation hearings and has emerged as a major issue in President Bush's nomination of appeals court Judge Samuel Alito to replace O'Connor, who has been the swing vote in support of abortion rights. Protesters demonstrated outside - singing, chanting and praying - and the argument inside the court was at times contentious, too, with jus- tices talking over each other and over the lawyers. New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte struggled to field sharp questions on why state law- makers had made an exception to allow abortions when a young mother's life - but not her health - was in danger. The court has held that abortion restrictions should include a health exception. Doctors would fear being prosecuted or sued if they performed an abortion on a severely sick minor who did not want to notify a parent, several justices said. "That's the real problem here for the doctor who's on the line," said Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The law allows a judge to waive the require- ment, and Justice Antonin Scalia said: "It takes 30 seconds to place a phone call." We Deliver! 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