I don't know of anybody who isn't desperately supportive of the military," she said. "People want to say positive things. But it's difficult to say positive things in this environment and not have some snarky apologist for the White House turn it into some clipped phraseology that looks like support for the president's policies.
This is only half of the equation, however. Any criticism of the president's policies is instantly redirected at "the troops." If you praise the military, you're actually praising Bush! If you bash Bush, you're actually bashing the military!
It's quite sick, it's been going on for a long time, and all decent people should find it revolting.