"Mission Accomplished"

Five years ago, the U.S. president appeared on the deck of the U.S.S Abraham Lincoln and stated, "...my fellow Americans, major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the Battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."

White House press secretary Dana Perino clarified these remarks this past week, explaining, "President Bush is well aware that the banner should have been much more specific and said, 'Mission Accomplished for These Sailors on Who Are on This Ship on Their Mission.' And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner," she noted. [Source]

Right.... The problem was the wording on the banner.

But Ms. Perino is right, of course. They certainly have paid "a price" for, as she put it, "not being more specific." According to USA Today, a Gallup poll put Bush's job rating at just 28% approval, 67% disapproval. [Source] Compare this to the 70% approval he had exactly five years ago [Source] and it's really apparent -- my goodness -- that it's been a high price indeed.

As of today, there have been 4,065 confirmed deaths since the invasion of Iraq; 3,926 of which (that's 96.5%) since the "Mission Accomplished" speech. [Source]

If you could ask them, I imagine they'd have some very choice words about what Ms. Perino meant by "price."