...to protect the innocent.

U.S. ENCOURAGED BY IRAQI VOTE

WASHINGTON, January 29, 2005. United States officials were surprised and heartened today at the size of turnout in the Iraqi election despite a terrorist campaign to disrupt the voting. According to reports from Baghdad, 83 per cent of …registered voters cast their ballots yesterday. Many of them risked reprisals threatened by the insurgents.

A successful election has long been seen as the keystone in President Bush’s policy in Iraq. The purpose of the voting was to give legitimacy to the Iraqi Government, which had been founded on coups and power plays since a year ago, when Saddamn Hussein was overthrown by U.S. forces. ” The fact that the backing of the electorate has gone to the generals who have been ruling Iraq for years does not, in the Administration’s view, diminish the significance of the constitutional step that has been taken.

In a statement cleared by President Bush and by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice said that ‘the people of Iraq had expressed their choice and deserve our support’. [A] State department spokesman, drew attention to the fact that the balloting had been conducted ‘remarkably smoothly and fairly despite insurgents efforts to disrupt the voting’.

Words in bold have been altered from the original story, in which the New York Times lauded the September, 1967 Presidential elections in the Republic of Vietnam.

You rememember the Republic of Vietnam, don't you? It was in all the papers...

(Tip o' the hat to A La Gauche for the intriguing detournement...)