Bush's speech was more popular among the British than it was with his own countrymen at the Big Apple Bar and Sports Pub on Yadkin Road.
Members of the British Airborne's 3rd Battalion turned their chairs to watch the speech on the bar's eight televisions, while most of their American comrades played pool and ordered drinks.
Some of the British soldiers, who are visiting Fort Bragg as part of an exchange program, have served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Others, such as Mike Ross, hope to go soon. The 19-year-old from Scotland appreciated Bush's comments, though he thought the speech dragged toward the end.
"It's good what he's saying about training up the Iraqi military," he said. "He seems to care about getting Iraq back on their feet."