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Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Mike Miller WHO, WHAT, WHEN?: Pulitzer-prize winning reporter for The New Yorker, among other publications, Seymour Hersh took the stage Thursday. Hersh recalled decades of reporting, covering his experiences in Vietnam up to his recent reports from Iraq and his impressions of politicians and the White House.

A legend of journalism, one of the most controversial reporters of today and "America's last muckraker," Seymour Hersh spoke on American foreign policy last night in Laurie Auditorium.

Hersh served as inaugural speaker of Trinity University's Maverick Lecture Series, presented by the History Department, which honors the late Maury Maverick, Jr., a civil rights lawyer, newspaper columnist and former member of the Texas Legislature and U.S. Marine Corps. The lecture was sponsored by the William and Salomé Scanlan Foundation, long friends of Maverick.

In a dynamic and conversational style, Hersh addressed the decisions of the Bush Administration, the War in Iraq, Afghanistan and the repercussions of such actions at home and abroad.

"By my count, it's 292 days left in the reign of King George II; the good news, when we wake up tomorrow, it'll be one day less," Hersh said. "That's about it on good news. He is going to be dangerous until 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 20. He's the most radical president we've had because he tried to impose democracy on the Middle East."

To understand this government, one needs a good dose of Shakespeare, Greek myths and Freud, Hersh said, adding that President Bush uses words that mean nothing.

"My own thought is it's not primarily about oil," Hersh said. "I really think that he thinks democracy is it. The driving factor is this guy's sense of belief. What he's done is he's mobilized this amazing coalition… the three biggest supporters are Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, three Sunni countries, working with us and the Brits, the French and the Israelis."

The audience applauded when Hersh noted the refusal by President Bush to talk to world leaders that he does not like. Hersh noted that we are an "amazing society" for this to not have been an issue.

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