United States | Lexington

How the Iraq war became a threat to American democracy

The country has yet to recover from its bitter lessons

Twenty years ago, President George W. Bush stood before the American people and proposed a radical intervention to head off a growing menace in one of the world’s most troubled regions. “Seldom has history offered a greater opportunity to do so much for so many,” he said in his state-of-the-union message in 2003.

This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “Getting over Iraq”

From the March 25th 2023 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

More from United States

 Pam Bondi is sworn in as she prepares to testify during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine her expected nomination to be Attorney General, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC.

Pam Bondi seems like a relatively safe pair of hands

But is America’s next attorney-general an independent operator?

US President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, USA.

Checks and Balance newsletter: Joe Biden’s farewell shot at the oligarchy

The outgoing president warns of a new “tech-industrial complex”


Xiaohongshu And TikTok Logos

A protest against America’s TikTok ban is mired in contradiction

Another Chinese app is not the alternative some young Americans think it is


Joe Biden wound up serving Donald Trump

In some ways, his administration will look less like an interregnum than like MAGA-lite

How bad will the smoke be for Angelenos’ health?

Expect more sickness and disrupted schooling

Should you have to prove your age before watching porn?

America’s Supreme Court weighs a Texan law aimed at protecting kids