David Frum Can Go Fuck Himself

On January 29, 2002, US President George W. Bush gave his State of the Union speech to the public since the September 11 attacks. In it, Bush laid out rhetoric that would be a staple in his administration. To cheers, Bush declared Afghan “terrorists” had been sent to Guantanamo Bay. Then, he directly targeted Iraq in an attack campaign that would dominate and justify the invasion of a sovereign nation. Bush said Iraq plotted to develop anthrax, nuclear weapons and nerve gas. He said their regime had “something to hide from the civilized world.” The narrative to beat the war drums had been cemented.

Thus began a massive turning point for the “weapons of mass destruction” lie. The Bush administration used this narrative to justify invading Iraq, forcing its markets to bend to global neoliberal standards. This “Axis of Evil” speech pointed the finger at Iran, Iraq and North Korea, hoping to tie the US’ global geopolitical enemies into the same camp. This propaganda led to one of the greatest crimes of the 21st century.

David Frum was the speech writer for George W. Bush who penned this address. He’s who we have to thank for this frenzy. His role was crucial in the escalating rhetoric against the Iraqi people and the imperial conquest that led to a conservative estimate of between 180,000-210,000 murdered civilians. Authorized torture became widespread in the war, while private military contractors soaked up billions of dollars. In some cases billions sent into the country became completely unaccounted for.

Studies of US “state-building” in the country show that the entire point was to break-up state-owned assets for the purposes of the global market. As Dave Whyte writes in “The Crimes of Neo-Liberal Rule in Occupied Iraq.”

The clearest statement of intent for the future of the Iraqi economy is contained in
Order 39, which permitted full foreign ownership of Iraqi state-owned assets and
decreed that over 200 state-owned enterprises, including electricity, telecommunications and the pharmaceuticals industry, could be dismantled. (p.181)

Though the war “proper” may have been declared over, there are still approximately 2,500 US soldiers stationed in the country, and will likely remain there for the forseeable future.

It’s beyond comprehension to truly convey the horror and imperialism that the Iraqi people suffered as a result of the Bush administration’s actions. But Frum thinks his role in the conflict was misguided, and at the same time, he believes the war was the better path forward.

No conservative has benefitted more from the rise of Donald Trump than David Frum. He turned his disgust with the far-right fascist into a rallying cry for the “proper” conservatism of torture, war crimes and genocide to reject the rude orange man. He wrote a book profiting off of the image of the cool calculated conservative in contrast to Trump’s attitude. He has turned his political capital into many appearances for Vox, CNN, MSNBC and countless other outlets. Most notably, he holds a position as staff writer for The Atlantic.

On the 20th anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq, Frum felt it was necessary for the world to hear his opinions on how the conflict went. In a piece titled “The Iraq War Reconsidered” Frum makes the argument that the mass-murdering conflict, in which he was an integral part in perpetrating, was an oopsie. A slip-up, but a necessary one.

This “war as mistake” narrative dominates the piece. It was poorly handled. Bungled from the beginning. Laced with errors. But the goal of the war was just, and it was merely a combination of incompetence and hot-headed actions that led to its disaster. This is the same rhetoric that hangs above discussions of the Vietnam war, Afghanistan and Korea. Any military action by the US isn’t wrong, merely handled poorly. This incompetent empire trope has shielded US military action from true examination, as any issue can treated as it were a bouquet of oopsie-daisies. This is the excuse of cowards.

Right at the beginning, Frum waters down the rhetoric that carried the US to war against Iraq, claiming that the US invaded “to destroy Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.” Then he states “The United States went to war to build democracy in Iraq.”

It’s fitting that the speechwriter for George W. Bush would be able to pack so much bullshit into such short passages. First, Bush actively looked for ways to connect Hussein to 9/11. At Colin Powell’s infamous speech to the United Nations demanding war with Iraq, he blatantly lied about weapons of mass destruction. There was no evidence, and what evidence was provided was misrepresented to justify military action. Hans Blix, UN weapons inspector in Iraq said there was no weapons of mass destruction in 700 inspections. As mentioned previously, the results of the US invasion of Iraq and their actual intent vary wildly. But as Frum so poignantly notes “I don’t believe any leaders of the time intended to be dishonest.”

Who gives a shit what you believe, Frum?

When first mentioning the “grim toll” of the war, Frum sandwiches the mention of the hundreds of thousands of violent civilians deaths between US military deaths and the cost to the American taxpayer. Then Frum mimes an apologetic tone, saying how at the time he “supported the war.” To justify his position, he waxes poetic about how he was horrified by Saddam’s cruelties. No mention is made of Hussein’s gas attacks in Iran, in which the US knew about and still chose to aid him.

Then, after the brief illusion of culpability, Frum moves on to the thrust of his article: Iraq is better off for the US intervention. People like Frum are too chickenshit to state this directly, but that’s the thrust of the rest of his “analysis.” This claim comes directly before Frum bemoans the fact that sanctions on Iraq had “fallen apart.” He does not mention their role in killing approximately 350,000 children in the country. Frum then says that a peaceful transition would be extremely unlikely in Iraq, and that it most likely would have evolved into a current situation like that of Syria. When comparing Afghanistan and Iraq, he mentions Iraq yielded battlefield victories. Presumably this is unlike Afghanistan, but the implication goes unsaid.

Then, in a truly enraging moment, he praises Iraq’s current oil market. Economic triumph! Does it go to the Iraqi people? Frum sure thinks it does. “About 7 million out of 40 million Iraqis receive a government salary or pension,” he writes.

First of all, 17.5 per cent of a country’s population is on government assistance? Shouldn’t that figure require more interrogation? Apparently not. This becomes clear upon examining his source, an NPR article about Iraq’s “Dire” economy where “Poverty is Rising.” In the same paragraph as the statistic Frum sourced, here’s what NPR writer Alice Fordham notes: “With drastically less oil revenue, the government has been paying its salaries and pensions intermittently or not at all.”

Frum’s utter disdain for the intelligence of his readers is on full display here. Did he not expect anyone to fact-check his claim? To click one link? The propagandist’s arrogance is too great for him to expect intelligence from his fans. Utterly disgusting behaviour from an unrepentant sack of shit. Par for the course for Frum.

At the end of the article, Frum tacks on a mention of the war in Ukraine to make some sort of broad point about defending democracy. If this is the totality of his reflections on the Iraq War then he’s earned his buckets of money he surely makes from The Atlantic. This piece shows that the laundering of the Bush-era war criminals continues unabated 20 years after one of the greatest crimes of the 21st century began. Frum’s atonement amounts to wiping crocodile tears with his countless dollars soaked in the blood of Iraqi civilians.

Frum doesn’t deserve anything he currently has. His position as the “measured” conservative in the age of MAGA Republicans is tempting to liberals who want to believe that, despite our differences, most of us are rational human beings who want to cooperate. This lie has made Frum untold amounts of political capital and money, despite his role in pushing for an invasion that destroyed a sovereign nation and broke the politics of the US in untold ways. Of course he must play-act some sort of penitence for his legacy, which is why he’s happy to admit that, in hindsight, he believes the Iraq War was an honest mistake made by honest men who didn’t know any better. A tragedy of errors. But beyond that, nothing that has happened in the country weighs on his soul. To him, it’s better than the unknown alternative he’s conjured in his mind. This is how he’s allowed to publish Iraq War apologia in The Atlantic in 2023.

The uncomfortable reality of Frum’s prominence is disturbing, because it asks us a simple question: Why would anything eat away at him? He and every other member of the Bush administration who destroyed a sovereign nation walk free, sentenced to death by natural causes in their twilight years, surrounded by loved ones. The only punishment they face is the intermittent reminder of their actions, which buzz around them like flies and are easily swatted with wads of cash.