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If Bush “lied” so did many others

First – apologies for the 3 page length of this but it had to be said. I wrote most of this and posted it at a forum I belong to a while back. I’ve updated it to include recent events. The points I tried to make a year ago when wrote most of this still hold today.

As you all know, much hay has been made over the ISG report (aka the Duelfer report – links to blogger analysis here [1]) that states essentially that there are no WMD in Iraq. The usual suspects (Kerry and Co. [2]) are jumping all over this as proof positive that the Bush administration “lied” and “misled” people on the ratationale for the Iraq war.

If they did, so do alot of other people – going years back. Let’s start with the Clinton administration – he also believed Iraq possessed WMD and the capability to use the lethal arsenal:

Clinton – Feb. 1998: [3]

“We have to defend our future from these predators of the 21st century. They feed on the free flow of information and technology. They actually take advantage of the freer movement of people, information and ideas. And they will be all the more lethal if we allow them to build arsenals of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. We simply cannot allow that to happen.

There is no more clear example of this threat than Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. His regime threatens the safety of his people, the stability of his region and the security of all the rest of us. I want the American people to understand first the past how did this crisis come about? And I want them to understand what we must do to protect the national interest, and indeed the interest of all freedom-loving people in the world.

Remember, as a condition of the cease-fire after the Gulf War, the United Nations demanded not the United States the United Nations demanded, and Saddam Hussein agreed to declare within 15 days this is way back in 1991 within 15 days his nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them, to make a total declaration. That’s what he promised to do.

The United Nations set up a special commission of highly trained international experts called UNSCOM, to make sure that Iraq made good on that commitment. We had every good reason to insist that Iraq disarm. Saddam had built up a terrible arsenal, and he had used it not once, but many times, in a decade-long war with Iran, he used chemical weapons, against combatants, against civilians, against a foreign adversary, and even against his own people.

And during the Gulf War, Saddam launched Scuds against Saudi Arabia, Israel and Bahrain. Now, instead of playing by the very rules he agreed to at the end of the Gulf War, Saddam has spent the better part of the past decade trying to cheat on this solemn commitment. Consider just some of the facts: Iraq repeatedly made false declarations about the weapons that it had left in its possession after the Gulf War. When UNSCOM would then uncover evidence that gave lie to those declarations, Iraq would simply amend the reports.

For example, Iraq revised its nuclear declarations four times within just 14 months and it has submitted six different biological warfare declarations, each of which has been rejected by UNSCOM. In 1995, Hussein Kamal, Saddam’s son-in-law, and the chief organizer of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction program, defected to Jordan. He revealed that Iraq was continuing to conceal weapons and missiles and the capacity to build many more.

Then and only then did Iraq admit to developing numbers of weapons in significant quantities and weapon stocks. Previously, it had vehemently denied the very thing it just simply admitted once Saddam Hussein’s son-in-law defected to Jordan and told the truth. Now listen to this, what did it admit? It admitted, among other things, an offensive biological warfare capability notably 5,000 gallons of botulinum, which causes botulism; 2,000 gallons of anthrax; 25 biological-filled Scud warheads; and 157 aerial bombs.”

And in this shocker, the former President gave the following warning:

“And some day, some way, I guarantee you, he’ll use the arsenal. And I think every one of you who’s really worked on this for any length of time believes that, too.”

He declared boldly in that same speech:

“If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction program. We want to seriously reduce his capacity to threaten his neighbors. I am quite confident, from the briefing I have just received from our military leaders, that we can achieve the objective and secure our vital strategic interests. Let me be clear: A military operation cannot destroy all the weapons of mass destruction capacity. But it can and will leave him significantly worse off than he is now in terms of the ability to threaten the world with these weapons or to attack his neighbors.”

In light of what’s being reported today in newspapers across the world on the ISG report findings regarding the intelligence failures that were, in part, used to justify the full scale 2003 Iraq war, I believe it’s important to note that the former President also believed force was perfectly justified in order to render virtually useless Saddam’s ability to use his WMD to threaten his neighbors … and the free world as well! Just how strong was this belief? Let’s let him tell you – from his December 1998 declaration [4]justifying the US cruise missile attack on Iraq (Operation Desert Fox):

“Saddam (Hussein) must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.”

Nuclear arms?? What proof existed of that? Was the President deliberately misleading the American people?

“Earlier today I ordered America’s armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces.”

Oh my! That lapdog (please note the sarcasm – that is the unfortunate term used by many anti-war here to describe the very cool British Prime Minister) Tony Blair agreed to send in British forces?? Who trusts that guy anyway?

“Their mission is to attack Iraq’s nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors.”

Again, there’s mention of this “nuclear” stuff. Where did the President get his information from??

Apparently, the cruise missile strikes against Iraq back in December 1998 were supposed to be so powerful, so as to oust Saddam Hussien (dare I suggest the term “regime change” as being appropriate here??):

“The best way to end that threat once and for all is with a new Iraqi government — a government ready to live in peace with its neighbors, a government that respects the rights of its people.”

So I conclude that as a result of the cruise missile attacks launched on Iraq by order of former President Bill Clinton back in December 1998 (with the strong backing of Prime Minister Tony Blair but not the backing of the “credit-worthy” UN), that the result of said attacks (after four days) should have resulted in 1) a serious disabling of Iraq’s WMD and nuclear weapons systems and 2) regime change.

Well, in hindsight, we know regime change didn’t happen, but just how were we supposed to know for sure whether or not four days of bombing in December 1998 seriously disabled Saddam’s capability for using his WMD and nuclear programs/arsenals to attack his neighbors – or anywhere in the world, for that matter? It would seem we really didn’t know, since Iraq rejected [5] the move that replaced UNSCOM with UNMOVIC (the UN monitoring, verification and inspection commission) in Dec. 1999 and in November of 2000 [6] Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz rejected new weapons inspection proposals.

So, how should we have proceeded? Just two years later, after much Iraqi stonewalling in both administrations, President Bush, believing much the same as former President Clinton had during his administration that Iraq possessed the nuclear and biological weapons that were capable of posing a serious threat to peace, took his case about Iraq to the UN, imploring them to act in a timely manner.

Believing as former President Bill Clinton did back in 1998 about Saddam Hussein and how he was and remained a threat to international peace, President Bush urged the UN in Sept. 2002 to reaffirm its commitment to making sure Saddam Hussein had fully and unconditionally disarmed. Here’s some [7] of what the President had to say:

“In 1991, Iraq promised U.N. inspectors immediate and unrestricted access to verify Iraq’s commitment to rid itself of weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles. Iraq broke this promise, spending seven years deceiving, evading, and harassing U.N. inspectors before ceasing cooperation entirely. Just months after the 1991 cease-fire, the Security Council twice renewed its demand that the Iraqi regime cooperate fully with inspectors, condemning Iraq’s serious violations of its obligations. The Security Council again renewed that demand in 1994, and twice more in 1996, deploring Iraq’s clear violations of its obligations. The Security Council renewed its demand three more times in 1997, citing flagrant violations; and three more times in 1998, calling Iraq’s behavior totally unacceptable. And in 1999, the demand was renewed yet again.

As we meet today, it’s been almost four years since the last U.N. inspectors set foot in Iraq, four years for the Iraqi regime to plan, and to build, and to test behind the cloak of secrecy. We know that Saddam Hussein pursued weapons of mass murder even when inspectors were in his country. Are we to assume that he stopped when they left? The history, the logic, and the facts lead to one conclusion: Saddam Hussein’s regime is a grave and gathering danger. To suggest otherwise is to hope against the evidence. To assume this regime’s good faith is to bet the lives of millions and the peace of the world in a reckless gamble. And this is a risk we must not take.”

The goals of President Bush:

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately and unconditionally forswear, disclose, and remove or destroy all weapons of mass destruction, long-range missiles, and all related material.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all support for terrorism and act to suppress it, as all states are required to do by U.N. Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will cease persecution of its civilian population, including Shi’a, Sunnis, Kurds, Turkomans, and others, again as required by Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will release or account for all Gulf War personnel whose fate is still unknown. It will return the remains of any who are deceased, return stolen property, accept liability for losses resulting from the invasion of Kuwait, and fully cooperate with international efforts to resolve these issues, as required by Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all illicit trade outside the oil-for-food program. It will accept U.N. administration of funds from that program, to ensure that the money is used fairly and promptly for the benefit of the Iraqi people.”

We all know what happened with the UN after President Bush’s speech (must I rehash that as well? Nah.). The President, after much push and shove, arguing, fussing, and fighting with the UN, decided that force was a necessary last resort in order to finally, ulimately get Saddam Hussein to disarm. He reached this decision after being advised by top officials in his cabinet, senior intelligence officials and by what he knew the UN had NOT been able to do: get Saddam to provide concrete proof that Iraq was at last free of WMD and any “nuKUlar” programs. Remember, even President Clinton [3]believed force was sometimes the only answer:

“Now, let me say to all of you here as all of you know the weightiest decision any president ever has to make is to send our troops into harm’s way. And force can never be the first answer. But sometimes, it’s the only answer.”

A question I believe that should be asked in all this is: what’s is the reader’s measure of success for a military campaign? Based on what we know about Desert Fox, should we conclude that it was a success? We know what the goals were in Desert Fox. Were they achieved? If not, why? Was the prior administration justified in its attack against Iraq or where they pulling the wool over the eyes of the world? I have searched Google and has failed to uncover any evidence of a full scale investigation into the prior administration’s justifications for launching an attack on Iraq back in 1998. Perhaps the justifications were valid?

It would appear that Operation Iraqi Freedom could be called more of a “success story” than Operation Desert Fox, in light of some of the goals of President Bush which have now been achieved (regime change and as a result of doing so effectively ending Iraq’s official support and harboring of terrorists in Iraq, no more persecution of civilian population, the unturning of mass graves and thus returning the remains of the deceased to their families, stopped the insanity of the fraudulent oil-for food program, actively searching for the last remaining Gulf War I veteran who’s whereabouts are at the present time unknown, etc). Some of the goals of the current administration have been met and the goal of Iraqi self-reliance will be realized given a little time and patience – post war Iraq should not be considered a failure. Remember, post war Iraq 1999 was never considered a failure despite the belief by many that Operation Desert Fox didn’t quite achieve its goals.

Were President Clinton, VP Al Gore, Maddie Albright, William Cohen, President Bush, VP Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz, Donald Rumseld, Colin Powell, Condi Rice, PM Tony Blair, Jack Straw, Geoff Hoon among others … were they all lying about the Iraq threat? Let’s take a look at some more quotes:

“One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line.” President Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998.

“If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction program.” President Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998.

“Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face.” Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998.

“He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983.” Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

“[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq’s refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs.” Letter to President Clinton, signed by Sens. Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others Oct. 9, 1998.

“Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process.” Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998.

“Hussein has … chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies.” Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999.

“There is no doubt that . Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies.” Letter to President Bush, Signed by Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL,) and others, Dec, 5, 2001.

“We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them.” Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002.

“We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country.” Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002.

“Iraq’s search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power.” Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002.

“We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seing and developing weapons of mass destruction.” Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002.

“The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons…” Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002.

“I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force — if necessary — to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security.” Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002.

“There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years . We also should remember we have alway s underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction.” Sen. Jay Rockerfeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002,

“He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do.” Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002.

“In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons.” Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

“We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction. “[W]ithout question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime … He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation. And now he has continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction … So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real … Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003.

Could it possibly be that …. gasp … prepare yourself for this one:

They were ALL TELLING THE TRUTH??

I believe that they were. The only other alternative would be to believe that two consecutive administrations actually lied to the American people about the threat Iraq posed to its neighbors and the world.