BEIJING, June 5 (Xinhuanet) -- US President George W. Bush appeared more passionate than ever about touting his justifications for the Iraq war by meshing the themes of this century's war on terrorism and last century's crusade against Nazism, an attempt which only failed to vindicate himself, said a commentary carried by the China Daily on Saturday.

    Speaking on Wednesday at the Air Force Academy commencement in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Bush said, "Like the Second World War,our present conflict began with a ruthless surprise attack on the United States. Like the murderous ideologies of the 20th century, the ideology of terrorism reaches across borders and seek recruitsin every country."

    "Our goal, the goal of this generation, is the same," he said. "We will secure our nation and defend the peace through the forward march of freedom."

    Lashing out at Bush, the commentary said Bush meshed the themes of the two different wars with an attempt to reassure the world that the campaign in Iraq was worthy of the US mission and that the terrible toll of rebuilding the country is a necessary price to pay in a broader struggle against terrorism.

    The war in Iraq is so drastically different from World War II that the parallels Bush has dredged up underline both his ignorance of history and a poorly disguised intent to confuse the public, it continued.

    By using language reminiscent of World War II, Bush, whose approval ratings at home lingers around mid-40 percent, the lowest point during his presidency, seemed unfazed, even determined to defend the US strategy in Iraq, the commentary said.

    It said there is nothing new in his plan to win the war on terror. Rather, making no excuses for the string of post-war debacles, including the unceasing violence in Iraq, the scandal over prisoner abuse and the growing pressure on an already stretched military, Bush had to restate his belief in pre-emption.

    "The whole world is better off with Saddam Hussein sitting in a prison cell," Bush said.

    The commentary said the truth is the war on terror has been hijacked by Washington to bring about a regime change in Iraq and the world is by no means safer with the ousting of Saddam Hussein.

    The gravity of the security issue should not necessarily justify an extended use of force, it said. In particular, pre-emptive tactics are not the answer to terrorism, and the outcome of such actions has turned out counter to the original wishes of the advocates.

    The old rhetoric in his speech, a follow-up to the one he delivered last week outlining policy on Iraq and a run-up to his European trip for the D-Day ceremony at Normandy, indicates that Bush's initial go-it-alone policy has become his administration's biggest vulnerability, which will only further strain the dwindling credibility of the transition plan for Iraq, the article concluded. Enditem