Because, you know, Our Leader knows the true meaning of the word “sacrifice“:

Q Mr. President, you haven’t been golfing in recent years. Is that related to Iraq?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes, it really is. I don’t want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the Commander-in-Chief playing golf. I feel I owe it to the families to be as — to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal.

Some gave all. Others packed the golf bag away.

But, as noted over at VetVoice, this all sounds a little fishy:

UPDATE: Warren Street at Blue Girl, Red State says that Bush is lying about why he quit golf:

Actually, it is far more likely that Bush quit playing golf because he was suffering from knee problems throughout the latter half of 2003.

Street then links to a CBS News article published in December 2003:

Bush, 57, will have an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) test on Thursday, Dec. 18. The body-scanning device enables doctors to see internal organs in 3D.The MRI is being performed on the advice of the President’s regular White House physician. Last summer, Bush suffered a minor muscle tear in his right calf and that injury, along with aching knees, forced him to abandon his running routine. The calf strain healed by August when he had his annual physical, but the president said in September that he suspected he had a meniscus tear.

(H/T to Cernig)

UPDATE II: Bush actually played his last round of golf on October 13, 2003.  This means that the reason he gave for quitting after the August 2003 U.N. bombing is dubious at best.  More likely, he made the story up in a clumsy ploy to gain sympathy.  In many regions and cultures around the world, this is called “lying.”

In America, we call it ”truthiness.”