Former President George W. Bush declined Sunday to join those criticizing his successor’s approach to fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
“The president has laid out what I think is a good goal” to degrade and defeat the Islamic State, he told CNN’s Candy Crowley.
“All I hope is that we succeed.”
Bush’s record in Iraq and Syria has become part of the debate over whether President Obama has taken the right approach to relations with those two Arab countries, particularly as the Islamic State has become a serious threat to stability in both. Obama’s response to that threat has been criticized as passive and ineffective by Republicans, and disputes over Syria policy reportedly contributed to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel’s forced resignation.
And though Democrats have subjected the former president to severe criticism for his own policies, Bush refused to return the favor.
Asked if he was with Obama on the president’s goal to degrade and defeat the Islamic State, Bush responded: “Absolutely.”
When asked if he agreed with the approach to carrying out that goal, Bush said: “Well, we’ll see, time will tell … hopefully what he’s trying to do works. If it doesn’t work, hopefully he’ll change.”
