Turn back the clock.. Did we forget?

[BRIANC1046]

Bush Administration Officials’ Lies about Iraq’s Supposed Weapons of Mass Destruction in Their Own Words

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By: Jackson Thoreau - 02/16/04

Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction.

- Dick Cheney, speech to VFW National Convention, Aug. 26, 2002

Right now, Iraq is expanding and improving facilities that were used for the production of biological weapons.

- George W. Bush, speech to UN General Assembly, Sept. 12, 2002

No terrorist state poses a greater or more immediate threat to the security of our people and the stability of the world than the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

- Donald Rumsfeld, testimony to Congress, Sept. 19, 2002

The world is also uniting to answer the unique and urgent threat posed by Iraq.

- George W. Bush, Nov. 23, 2002

If he declares he has none, then we will know that Saddam Hussein is once again misleading the world.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, press briefing, Dec. 2, 2002

We know for a fact that there are weapons there.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, press briefing, Jan. 9, 2003

What we know from UN inspectors over the course of the last decade is that Saddam Hussein possesses thousands of chemical warheads, that he possesses hundreds of liters of very dangerous toxins that can kill millions of people.

- White House spokesman Dan Bartlett, CNN interview, Jan. 26, 2003

Our intelligence officials estimate that Saddam Hussein had the materials to produce as much as 500 tons of sarin, mustard, and VX nerve agent…. The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.

- George W. Bush, State of the Union Address, Jan. 28, 2003

We know that Saddam Hussein is determined to keep his weapons of mass destruction, is determined to make more.

- Colin Powell, remarks to UN Security Council, Feb. 5, 2003

We have sources that tell us that Saddam Hussein recently authorized Iraqi field commanders to use chemical weapons - the very weapons the dictator tells us he does not have.

- George W. Bush, radio address, Feb. 8, 2003

If Iraq had disarmed itself, gotten rid of its weapons of mass destruction over the past 12 years, or over the last several months since [uN Resolution] 1441 was enacted, we would not be facing the crisis that we now have before us.

- Colin Powell, interview with Radio France International, Feb. 28, 2003

So has the strategic decision been made to disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction by the leadership in Baghdad?….I think our judgment has to be clearly not.

- Colin Powell, remarks to UN Security Council, March 7, 2003

Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal weapons ever devised.

- George W. Bush, address to the U.S., March 17, 2003

The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.

- George W. Bush, address to U.S., March 19, 2003

Well, there is no question that we have evidence and information that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, biological and chemical particularly…..All this will be made clear in the course of the operation, for whatever duration it takes.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleisher, press briefing, March 21, 2003

There is no doubt that the regime of Saddam Hussein possesses weapons of mass destruction. And….as this operation continues, those weapons will be identified, found, along with the people who have produced them and who guard them.

- Gen. Tommy Franks, press conference, March 22, 2003

I have no doubt we're going to find big stores of weapons of mass destruction.

- Defense Policy Board member Kenneth Adelman, The Washington Post, March 23, 2003

One of our top objectives is to find and destroy the WMD. There are a number of sites.

- Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clark, press briefing, March 22, 2003

We know where they are. They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south, and north somewhat.

- Donald Rumsfeld, ABC interview, March 30, 2003

Obviously the administration intends to publicize all the weapons of mass destruction U.S. forces find - and there will be plenty.

- Robert Kagan, The Washington Post, April 9, 2003

But make no mistake - as I said earlier - we have high confidence that they have weapons of mass destruction. That is what this war was about and it is about. And we have high confidence it will be found.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, press briefing, April 10, 2003

We are learning more as we interrogate or have discussions with Iraqi scientists and people within the Iraqi structure, that perhaps he destroyed some, perhaps he dispersed some. And so we will find them.

- George W. Bush, NBC interview, April 24, 2003

There are people who in large measure have information that we need….so that we can track down the weapons of mass destruction in that country.

- Donald Rumsfeld, press briefing, April 25, 2003

We'll find them. It'll be a matter of time to do so.

- George W. Bush, remarks to reporters, May 3, 2003

I'm absolutely sure that there are weapons of mass destruction there and the evidence will be forthcoming. We're just getting it just now.

- Colin Powell, remarks to reporters, May 4, 2003

I'm not surprised if we begin to uncover the weapons program of Saddam Hussein – because he had a weapons program.

- George W. Bush, remarks to reporters, May 6, 2003

We said what we said because we meant it…..We continue to have confidence that WMD will be found.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, press briefing, May 7, 2003

Before the war, there's no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, biological and chemical. I expected them to be found. I still expect them to be found.

- Gen. Michael Hagee, Commandant of the Marine Corps, interview with reporters, May 21, 2003

Given time, given the number of prisoners now that we're interrogating, I'm confident that we're going to find weapons of mass destruction.

- Gen. Richard Myers, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff, NBC Today Show interview, May 26, 2003

Do I think we're going to find something? Yeah, I kind of do, because I think there's a lot of information out there."

- Maj. Gen. Keith Dayton, Defense Intelligence Agency, press conference, May 30, 2003

You remember when Colin Powell stood up in front of the world, and he said Iraq has got laboratories, mobile labs to build biological weapons....They're illegal. They're against the United Nations resolutions, and we've so far discovered two [the labs were later judged to not contain any such weapons, that they most likely were used for weather balloons]. And we'll find more weapons as time goes on, But for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong. We found them.

- George W. Bush, remarks to reporters, May 31, 2003

The backpedaling begins:

We never believed that we'd just tumble over weapons of mass destruction in that country.

- Donald Rumsfeld, Fox News interview, May 4, 2003

U.S. officials never expected that "we were going to open garages and find" weapons of mass destruction.

- Condoleeza Rice, Reuters interview, May 12, 2003

I just don't know whether it was all destroyed years ago - I mean, there's no question that there were chemical weapons years ago - whether they were destroyed right before the war [or] whether they're still hidden.

- Maj. Gen. David Petraeus, Commander 101st Airborne, press briefing, May 13, 2003

I don't believe anyone that I know in the administration ever said that Iraq had nuclear weapons. [sEE NEXT QUOTE]

- Donald Rumsfeld, Senate appropriations subcommittee on defense hearing, May 14, 2003

We believe [Hussein] has, in fact, reconstituted nuclear weapons.

- Dick Cheney, NBC's Meet the Press, March 16, 2003

They may have had time to destroy them, and I don't know the answer.

- Donald Rumsfeld, remarks to the Council on Foreign Relations, May 27, 2003

It was a surprise to me then - it remains a surprise to me now - that we have not uncovered weapons, as you say, in some of the forward dispersal sites. Believe me, it's not for lack of trying. We've been to virtually every ammunition supply point between the Kuwaiti border and Baghdad, but they're simply not there.

- Lt. Gen. James Conway, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, press interview, May 30, 2003

I think some in the media have chosen to use the word 'imminent.’ Those were not words we used. We used 'grave and gathering' threat. [sEE NEXT QUOTE]

- White House spokesman Scott McClellan, press briefing, Jan. 31, 2004

This is about an imminent threat.

- White House spokesman Scott McClellan, press briefing, Feb. 10, 2003

After being asked whether Hussein was an “imminent” threat: Well, of course he is

- White House spokesman Dan Bartlett, CNN interview, Jan. 26, 2003

After being asked whether the U.S. went to war because officials said Hussein’s alleged weapons were a direct, imminent threat to the U.S.: Absolutely.

- White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, press briefing, May 7, 2003

And finally, some truth:

We urge you to... enunciate a new strategy that would secure the interests of the U.S. and our friends and allies around the world. That strategy should aim, above all, at the removal of Saddam Hussein's regime from power.

- Letter to President Clinton, signed by Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, and others, Jan. 26, 1998, http://www.newamericancentury.org/iraqclintonletter.htm

The U.S. should assert its military dominance over the world to shape “the international security order in line with American principles and interests,” push for “regime change” in Iraq and China, among other countries, and “fight and decisively win multiple, simultaneous major theater wars….While the unresolved conflict with Iraq provides the immediate justification, the need for a substantial American force presence in the Gulf transcends the issue of the regime of Saddam Hussein.”

- “Rebuilding America’s Defenses: Strategy, Forces and Resources for a New Century,” The Project for the New American Century [members include Cheney and Rumsfeld], Sept. 2000

Judge whether good enough [to] hit S.H. [saddam Hussein] at the same time. Not only UBL [Osama bin Laden]….Go massive. Sweep it all up. Things related and not.

- Donald Rumsfeld notes, Philadelphia Daily News, Sept. 11, 2001

For bureaucratic reasons, we settled on one issue, weapons of mass destruction, [as justification for invading Iraq] because it was the one reason everyone could agree on.

- Paul Wolfowitz, Vanity Fair interview, May 28, 2003

From the very beginning, there was a conviction, that Saddam Hussein was a bad person and that he needed to go. Going after Saddam was topic "A" ten days after the inauguration - eight months before Sept. 11.

- former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill, CBS’ 60 Minutes, Jan. 11, 2004

I don't think they [WMD] existed. What everyone was talking about is stockpiles produced after the end of the last [1991] Gulf War, and I don't think there was a large-scale production program in the '90s.

- David Kay, former chief weapons inspector of the UN Special Commission on Iraq, Reuters, Jan. 24, 2004

Intelligence “analysts never said there was an imminent threat" from Iraq before the war.

- CIA Director George Tenet, speech, Feb. 5, 2004

NOTE: Republicans impeached Clinton over a lie involving a private extramarital affair that he told in public, in which no one died. The Bush administration’s lies about Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction have contributed to the deaths of more than 500 U.S. soldiers and thousands of Iraqi soldiers and civilians.

[igloo]

"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 invigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Sadism 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 mandated 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 seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction."

- Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. 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 always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction."

- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (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."

- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

"Without 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 is miscalculating America's response to his

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

[igloo]

Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent. Since when have terrorists and tyrants announced their intentions, politely putting us on notice before they strike? If this threat is permitted to fully and suddenly emerge, all actions, all words and all recriminations would come too late.

- George W. Bush, Jan. 28, 2003

[igloo]

"People can quarrel with whether we should have more troops in Afghanistan or internationalize Iraq or whatever, but it is incontestable that on the day I left office, there were unaccounted for stocks of biological and chemical weapons."

-President Clinton on Larry King

[igloo]

I could also post a multitude of facts and well wriiten articles to counter your bullshit "lied" attack.....but it would fall on deaf and dumb ears.....

Give it up already with this bullshit...seriously simpleton....you are a joke...

In addition, while you are calling Bush a liar, I also suggest you call the foreign intelligence services liars as well, including those who were against the war....Also call the U.N. findings a pile of bullshit, as well as weapons inspectors....Including Hans Blix, who just said it was his gut feeling that Iraq had WMD

You want to call Bush a liar...fine.....but show you have some credibility and any type of IQ, and call all who thought the same..."liars".........anything less just exposes you as a biased, ignorant blowhard

Jerkoff

[BRIANC1046]

Originally posted by igloo

Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent. Since when have terrorists and tyrants announced their intentions, politely putting us on notice before they strike? If this threat is permitted to fully and suddenly emerge, all actions, all words and all recriminations would come too late.

- George W. Bush, Jan. 28, 2003

our terror experts tell us when a threat is imminent.. they didn't believe Iraq was a threat

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by bdanto4

our terror experts tell us when a threat is imminent.. they didn't believe Iraq was a threat

Does it taste good?

[igloo]

Originally posted by bdanto4

our terror experts tell us when a threat is imminent.. they didn't believe Iraq was a threat

Wow, you are a fucking moron.....what an idiotic response to this statement by Bush

Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent. Since when have terrorists and tyrants announced their intentions, politely putting us on notice before they strike? If this threat is permitted to fully and suddenly emerge, all actions, all words and all recriminations would come too late.

- George W. Bush, Jan. 28, 2003

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you

[BRIANC1046]

Originally posted by igloo

I could also post a multitude of facts and well wriiten articles to counter your bullshit "lied" attack.....but it would fall on deaf and dumb ears.....

Give it up already with this bullshit...seriously simpleton....you are a joke...

In addition, while you are calling Bush a liar, I also suggest you call the foreign intelligence services liars as well, including those who were against the war....Also call the U.N. findings a pile of bullshit, as well as weapons inspectors....Including Hans Blix, who just said it was his gut feeling that Iraq had WMD

You want to call Bush a liar...fine.....but show you have some credibility and any type of IQ, and call all who thought the same..."liars".........anything less just exposes you as a biased, ignorant blowhard

Jerkoff

i must have missed the war on Iraq Clinton started.. but wait he didn't start it, Bush did..

I won't deny the fact that almost everyone thought he possesed WMD is some way, but he wasn't an imminent threat.. Bush started the war and lied to us.. Other countries have weapons of mass destruction

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by bdanto4

i must have missed the war on Iraq Clinton started.. but wait he didn't start it, Bush did..

I won't deny the fact that almost everyone thought he possesed WMD is some way, but he wasn't an imminent threat.. Bush started the war and lied to us.. Other countries have weapons of mass destruction

DOES IT TASTE GOOD?

[igloo]

Originally posted by bdanto4

i must have missed the war on Iraq Clinton started.. but wait he didn't start it, Bush did..

I won't deny the fact that almost everyone thought he possesed WMD is some way, but he wasn't an imminent threat.. Bush started the war and lied to us.. Other countries have weapons of mass destruction

Your stupidity is spellbinding......

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by igloo

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you

I think someone rode the short bus to school as a kid.

[BRIANC1046]

Originally posted by igloo

Wow, you are a fucking moron.....what an idiotic response to this statement by Bush

Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent. Since when have terrorists and tyrants announced their intentions, politely putting us on notice before they strike? If this threat is permitted to fully and suddenly emerge, all actions, all words and all recriminations would come too late.

- George W. Bush, Jan. 28, 2003

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you

i read the quote bro.. your just annoying.. no obviously they won't give us notice before they strike.. but.. the experts that know the difference between a threat and an imminent threat determine that.. and they didn't think it was imminent..

The words don't come from the terrorists or tyrants, THEY COME FROM OUR INTELLIGENCE!!

[BRIANC1046]

Originally posted by mr mahs

I think someone rode the short bus to school as a kid.

actually, I was the dude in the bus throwing spit balls at the back of your lame ass

[igloo]

Originally posted by mr mahs

I think someone rode the short bus to school as a kid.

:laugh:

This schmuck may be our new resident bafoon....

[igloo]

Originally posted by bdanto4

i read the quote bro.. your just annoying.. no obviously they won't give us notice before they strike.. but.. the experts that know the difference between a threat and an imminent threat determine that.. and they didn't think it was imminent..

The words don't come from the terrorists or tyrants, THEY COME FROM OUR INTELLIGENCE!!

You can't be serious...please tell me you are deliberately trying to make an ass out of yourself, for whatever reason...

There is no way you can possibly be this stupid...there is no way that you can be intentionally burying yourself as you are...

Wow...you are a fucking retard.....

"Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent"....

Get it simpleton?.....Holy shit are you an embarassment

[BRIANC1046]

Originally posted by igloo

:laugh:

This schmuck may be our new resident bafoon....

nah, no resident.. I'm too busy to post 4,000 times on a current event message board on clubplanet.. I'm more interested in the club aspect of clubplanet.. you won't be seeing me very often.. but.. when I'm around you will sure all hell hear me..

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by bdanto4

nah, no resident.. I'm too busy to post 4,000 times on a current event message board on clubplanet.. I'm more interested in the club aspect of clubplanet.. you won't be seeing me very often.. but.. when I'm around you will sure all hell hear me..

HOW DID IT TASTE?

[kramadas]

Originally posted by bdanto4

The words don't come from the terrorists or tyrants, THEY COME FROM OUR INTELLIGENCE!!

Good point.

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by raver_mania

Good point.

How so?

[kramadas]

Originally posted by mr mahs

How so?

HOw does Bush(or any president) make a decision whether to attack a country or not, if its a danger or not?

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by raver_mania

HOw does Bush(or any president) make a decision whether to attack a country or not, if its a danger or not?

I still don't get your point, honestly with no disrespect. The Senate voted for the use of force from the intelligence provided by the intelligence community, here and abroad.

[igloo]

Originally posted by raver_mania

Good point.

Raver...are you kidding me...

This moron was trying to say the intelligence said Iraq was not imminent....and this moron used that point to counter Bush's statements that we can no longer wait until the threat is imminent........

The kid is clueless

[bigpoppanils]

Originally posted by bdanto4

Bush Administration Officials’ Lies about Iraq’s Supposed Weapons of Mass Destruction in Their Own Words

Bush didnt lie...exaggerated, most likely, but i dont beleive he lied.

the CIA screwed up royally (yet once again) and never fessed up to it (yet once again).

George Tenet should have resigned after 9/11. That whole agency needs a revamp.

[kramadas]

Iraq was not imminent before the war and the facts un-covered make it obvious that they were a long way from being a "clear and present danger". Its one thing for the neo-cons to fall back on the humanitarian issue as a reason for war, but WMD's, as evidenced over and over again, were/are a big non-issue. And the issue of terrorists - a simple comparison of their numbers before and after Hussein's fall makes it self-explanatory.

I'll buy that Hussein was a dictator, and needed to go, but not the neo-con rhetoric that the world as a whole (at present) is a safer place for his departure. I have not found anything out there, that is more than heresay and simple circumstatantial evidence, that there was any link between Al Queda and Iraq.

My support for the statement comes from the fact that Bush "bases" his decisions on recommendations from the intelligence community, and on not much else. Anything wrong with that?

And the intelligence community's stance is very contradictory at present. They should have had the strength to have made a non-biased analysis of the threat. HOwever, as seen from previous articles, the powers that be over there bent to the will of the administration and gave the green light (the articles I'm talking about regarding the pressure on analysts to come up with something on Iraq that would help the cause for war).

And I tend to believe Clarke's assessment. Its no secret that Bush has had a huge hard-on for Saddam since the very beginning.