Mission Accomplished

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President George W. Bush addresses sailors during the "Mission Accomplished" speech, May 1, 2003.

The USS Abraham Lincoln returning to port carrying its Mission Accomplished banner

President Bush, with NFO Lt. Ryan Philips, in the flight suit he wore for his controversial televised arrival on the USS Abraham Lincoln.

President George W. Bush on the Abraham Lincoln being saluted by the flight deck crew

"Mission Accomplished", a military phrase associated with completing a mission, is in recent years particularly associated with a sign displayed on the USS Abraham Lincoln as President George W. Bush addressed the United States on May 1, 2003.

Bush stated at the time that this was the end to major combat operations in Iraq but this assertion — and the sign — became controversial after conflict in Iraq increased during the Iraqi insurgency. The vast majority of casualties, among both US, UK and Iraqi combatants, and from Iraqi civilians, occurred after the speech.

1 Description
2 Mass media references
3 Rumsfeld also made reference
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Description

On May 1, 2003 George W. Bush landed on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, in Navy One, a Lockheed S-3 Viking, where he gave a speech announcing the end of major combat operations in the War on Iraq. Clearly visible in the background was a banner stating "Mission Accomplished."

Bush's historic jet landing on the carrier, the first by a sitting president, was criticized by opponents as an overly theatrical and expensive stunt. For instance, they pointed to the fact that the carrier was well within range of Bush's helicopter, and that a jet landing was not needed.^[1] Originally the White House had stated that the carrier was too far off the California coast for a helicopter landing and a jet would be needed to reach it. On the day of the speech, the Lincoln was only 30 miles from shore but the administration still decided to go ahead with the jet landing. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer admitted that the president "could have helicoptered, but the plan was already in place. Plus, he wanted to see a landing the way aviators see a landing."^[2] The Lincoln made a scheduled stop in Pearl Harbor shortly before the speech and returned to its home base in Everett, Washington on May 6, 2003.

The banner stating "Mission Accomplished" was the main source of controversy and criticism. Navy Commander and Pentagon spokesman Conrad Chun stated that the banner referred specifically to the aircraft carrier's 10-month deployment (which was the longest deployment of a carrier since the Vietnam War) and not the war itself, saying "It truly did signify a mission accomplished for the crew."

The White House claimed that the banner was requested by the crew of the ship. Afterwards, the administration and naval sources stated that the banner was the Navy's idea, White House staff members made the banner, and it was hung by the U.S. Navy personnel. White House spokesman Scott McClellan told CNN "We took care of the production of it. We have people to do those things. But the Navy actually put it up."^[3] According to John Dickerson of TIME magazine, the White House later conceded that they actually hung the banner but still insists it had been done at the request of the crewmembers.^[4]

The event was criticized by many as premature — especially later as the guerrilla war began. Subsequently, the White House released a statement saying that the sign and Bush's visit referred to the initial invasion of Iraq. Bush's speech noted:

"We have difficult work to do in Iraq. We are bringing order to parts of that country that remain dangerous."^[5]

However the speech also said that:

"In the Battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."^[5]

When he received an advance copy of the speech, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld took care to remove any use of the phrase "Mission Accomplished" in the speech itself. Later, when journalist Bob Woodward asked him about his changes to the speech, Rumsfeld responded:"I was in Baghdad, and I was given a draft of that thing to look at. And I just died, and I said my God, it's too conclusive. And I fixed it and sent it back… they fixed the speech, but not the sign."^[6]

For critics of the war, the photo-op became a symbol of the administration's unrealistic goals and perceptions of the conflict. Anti-war activists questioned the integrity and realism of George W. Bush's "Major combat" statement. The banner came to symbolize the irony of the President giving a victory speech only a few weeks after the beginning of a relatively long war. Many in the administration came to regret the slogan. Karl Rove later stated "I wish the banner [had] not [been] up there."^[7]

Bush reiterated his "Mission Accomplished" statement to the troops at Camp As Sayliyah on June 5, 2003 — about a month after the aircraft carrier incident: "America sent you on a mission to remove a grave threat and to liberate an oppressed people, and that mission has been accomplished."^[8]

A video appeared on YouTube alleging the White House website's official video of the speech Bush made on the aircraft carrier has now been cropped to conceal the "Mission Accomplished" banner.^[9] Conservative bloggers dispute that the edits to the video were for the purpose of hiding the banner, citing evidence that, due to camera angles, the banner would not have appeared in that shot in any event,^[10] and that blacked out portion of the video likely covers television graphics belonging to the source of the video.^[11]

[edit] Mass media references

Iraq war opponents have used the phrase "mission accomplished" in an ironic sense. In addition, some mainstream outlets questioned the state of the war with derivatives of this statement. For example, the October 6, 2003 cover of Time Magazine featured the headline "Mission Not Accomplished."^[12]

The phrase has been frequently lampooned in the Fox Broadcasting Company's television sitcom Arrested Development.

In a FoxTrot comic from around the time of this incident, Jason receives a "G.I. Jim Presidential Photo Op" Aircraft Carrier Playset for Christmas, parodying this incident. His best friend Marcus says he thought all those were recalled, to which Jason responds "Santa must have shopped early."

On The Daily Show, Stephen Colbert lampooned the sign with the anagram "C'mon I lied, so scampish." Jon Stewart also lampooned this publicity stunt by wearing a flight suit and appearing in front of a banner that read "My Bad!"

On the MSNBC program "Countdown with Keith Olbermann", the host ends most broadcasts by stating the number of days since the declaration of "Mission Accomplished".

Comedian Bill Maher pointed out that coincidentally the third anniversary fell on approximately the same date of the premiere of the Tom Cruise film Mission: Impossible 3.

Comedian Dave Chappelle, in a skit portraying how things would be different if Bush was black, appears before a Mission Accomplished banner in a flight suit saying, "What did I say? I'm not gloating, but did I not tell you we would win that shit? We rocked 'em!"

On the November 11, 2006 episode of Saturday Night Live, they had a skit parodying a Donald Rumsfeld interview with him being moved out of his office. As the move was just being started, they showed a banner that said "Move accomplished"

[edit] Rumsfeld also made reference

In a less publicized incident, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld also declared an end to major combat operations in Afghanistan on May 1, a few hours before President Bush's announcement.^[13]