Adrian Blomfield

Why I turned against the war

Adrian Blomfield went to Baghdad as a strong believer in regime change. Now he thinks that Bush has messed up in Iraq — and should be booted out of the White House

issue 30 October 2004

Adrian Blomfield went to Baghdad as a strong believer in regime change. Now he thinks that Bush has messed up in Iraq — and should be booted out of the White House

Nairobi

The other day, shortly after returning from a longish stint in Iraq on behalf of the Daily Telegraph, I had dinner with a staunch Republican friend at a restaurant here. I was expecting a stern rebuke, and she did not disappoint. ‘I thought you were fairly unbiased,’ she said. ‘Yet your stories became increasingly focused on the attacks. Why didn’t you write about the good things, about how Americans troops are building schools and restoring services?’

Many of those intending to vote for President Bush next week would share my chum’s frustrations. They believe there is a conspiracy, perpetrated by the undoubtedly liberal-dominated press, to bury the good news and report only on the bad in an effort to make sure he is not re-elected.

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