Left I on the News

I don't have the statistics to back this up, but I claim that George Bush has referred to himself, and had his aides refer to him, as "Commander-in-Chief," more than any previous President. If he were actually the Commander-in-Chief, though, wouldn't it be impossible to read something like this?:

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday the Air Force is not doing enough to help in the Iraq and Afghanistan war effort, complaining that some military leaders are "stuck in old ways of doing business."

Gates said in a speech at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., that getting the Air Force to send more surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft to Iraq and Afghanistan has been "like pulling teeth."

Don't feel too bad for the military though; save your feeling bad for the Afghan and Iraqi people, who are on the receiving end of the weapons that Gates wants more of:

He cited the example of drone aircraft that can watch, hunt and sometimes kill insurgents without risking the life of a pilot. He said the number of such aircraft has grown 25-fold since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The military's reliance on unmanned surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft has soared to more than 500,000 hours in the air, largely in Iraq, according to Pentagon data.

Only 25-fold? Only 500,0000 hours? What ever will they do, having to actually risk the lives of real Americans in order to carry on their brutal war? The fact that increased reliance on air war, and unmanned air war at that, increases the likelihood that innocent Iraqis will die? It's ok, you see, because they aren't actually targeting any specific innocent Iraqis, so their deaths don't count. And, for that matter, often aren't counted.