When asked why this Middle East peace initiative would be successful when all others had failed, President George W. Bush responded: “Well, just because history has proven to be unsuccessful doesn’t mean that we’re not going to try, for starters. I’m an optimist. I believe now that we have a interlocutor from the Palestinian Authority that has spoken clearly about the need to fight terror, that we have a good opportunity to advance the peace process. And I will seize the opportunity. Secondly, the war on Iraq has made it absolutely clear that those who harbor terrorists, fund terrorists, or harbor weapons of mass destruction will be held to account. That, in itself, helps create the conditions to move peace forward.”
– Transcript, “President Bush and President Uribe of Colombia in Photo Opportunity,” George W. Bush – White House Archives online, Accessed on 7/18/2016