Associated Press

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g8P_VOC...tuMGRgD90406880

In new tape, al-Qaida's No. 2 says Bush covering up Iraq defeat
13 hours ago

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — Al-Qaida's No. 2 claims in a newly released audio tape that five years of U.S. occupation of Iraq has brought only "failure and defeat."

Ayman al-Zawahri says Iraq is a problem the Bush administration will pass on to the next American president.

He says Bush was making a "ridiculous show to cover up for the failure" by acting on the advice of his top commander in Iraq and halting U.S. troop withdrawals after July.

The tape was posted Thursday on a militant Web site. Its authenticity could not be independently verified.