WaPo's Froomkin: Soldier's Death Means Bush Didn't Keep Promise

January 5th, 2007 2:37 PM

The distinctly liberal Dan Froomkin writes the "White House Briefing" column for the Washington Post's web site. Here, in its entirety, is the last item in Froomkin's Friday column:

How long did your New Year's Resolutions last?

Bush's didn't make it a day.

Bush was telling reporters last week about how his thoughts were with the troops when he volunteered: "People always ask me about a New Year's resolution -- my resolution is, is that they'll be safe. . . . "

The Department of Defense reports: "Sgt. Thomas E. Vandling Jr., 26, of Pittsburgh, Pa., died Jan. 1 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle while on combat patrol."

Bush made a mistake by categorizing his hope for the troops' safety as a New Year's resolution; nonetheless, Froomkin's exploitation of said mistake is nasty and cheap.