Evidence of Bush’s Early Decision to Invade Iraq
This won’t be news to those with a functioning bullshit detector (since they’ll know this already), and those who lack one aren’t likely to benefit much either (since they’ll probably persist in ignoring the evidence now, just as they’ve done all along), but here’s some pretty ironclad proof that Bush was not misled by bad intelligence on Iraq WMD, but instead cooked the intelligence books intentionally to justify an a priori decision to invade. From London’s Sunday Times: The secret Downing Street memo.
Some interesting quotes from the memo, which summarized a Prime Minister’s meeting on Iraq held July 23, 2002:
C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime’s record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action.
And later:
The Defence Secretary said that the US had already begun “spikes of activity” to put pressure on the regime. No decisions had been taken, but he thought the most likely timing in US minds for military action to begin was January, with the timeline beginning 30 days before the US Congressional elections.
The Foreign Secretary said he would discuss this with Colin Powell this week. It seemed clear that Bush had made up his mind to take military action, even if the timing was not yet decided. But the case was thin. Saddam was not threatening his neighbours, and his WMD capability was less than that of Libya, North Korea or Iran. We should work up a plan for an ultimatum to Saddam to allow back in the UN weapons inspectors. This would also help with the legal justification for the use of force.
Ray McGovern, a former CIA analyst turned Administration gadfly, has a suitably snarky take on the memo: Proof Bush fixed the facts.
May 5th, 2005 at 6:48 pm
Yes, great post.
But for us people with a quarter of a functioning brain, this is something we knew in March of ’03.
Terri Shiavo even knew he was lying threw his teeth.
May 9th, 2005 at 8:32 am
Basically, we all know that Iraq, was in Great need of Liberation, and that if Saddam had of been left to his own he would have killed more innocent people than the amount that got accidentally killed during the War. That is a Fact.
So in relation to that George Bush is a Hero. You Unpatriotic Bastards need to wash your mouths out with soap, saying all this shit about Your own president. You should be ashamed of your selves, your no better than the Bloody Terrorists themselves!!
May 10th, 2005 at 9:26 am
robert
“Liberation” was not the ‘reason’ to go to war. Please read the transcript of shrub’s address before the UN. WMDs ring a bell? Now step in to reality for a moment and acknowledge that no WMDs were found. Certainly not in any giga-death quantities.
Funny how the right wing(nuts) couldn’t just let Clinton get his job done eh? I don’t recall a chorus of freepers saying we should just let the preznit get on with his job back then. And Clinton’s lie had to do with his extramarrital affair…
And What is With all the CaPitalIZatiOn? Is that a freeper technique to lend Authenticity to Lies?
Go wash your own mouth out, moron. This country was founded on dissent. Get used to it. Or just go over to the freeper carnival and let your vitriol spew. Or go play in heavy freeway traffic.
May 10th, 2005 at 1:18 pm
Nice troll, Robert.
May 11th, 2005 at 9:04 am
[…] owup on the leaked ’smoking gun’ Tony Blair memo (previously discussed here in Evidence of Bush’s early decision to invade Iraq): From […]
May 12th, 2005 at 5:58 am
Dear Enkidu,
You Stupid Dumb Ass Cunt, you just don’t care about standing up for your country, what a weak pathetic little man you are !
The simple fact is that You lie within the Bone head Percentage of people who actually believe that these guys had no weapons of mass destruction !!!! How Fucking dense are you? you don’t think they that they could haved been moved??? the Piss weak united nations weapons inspectors probably consisting of Ass wipes like your self, gave Saddam ample opportunity to relocate his Arsonal.
But you wouldn’t think that you terrorist loving Creap!!!
May 14th, 2005 at 9:24 am
well, at least your post starts off politely Dear Robert! silly troll
I’ll try actual ideas, facts and language… then translate into freeper-speak at the very end so that you can understand and carry this message back to the rest of red state America.
Did you volunteer for military service? I did. Have you always had an American flag up in your house (outside too?) before 9/11? yeah. I am sure I recall you rushing to defend preznit Clinton and his troubles w Monica. uh huh. Did a tear spring to your eye when your 5 year old came home after his first week at school and spontaneously sang the national anthem and recited the pledge of allegiance? I am still proud of my son.
As to the whole Iraq war… lets say I think Sadaam did have some WMDs after GW1. What is the best way to disarm him? How about a program that destroyed 95 to 99% of the WMD programs? The infrastructure, the stockpiles, the delivery mechanisms, the R&D, the tools and univeristy foundations. Why that program was the multinational WMD UN weapons inspectors (Ritter, Blix etc). What were the guys whose actual job was Iraqi WMD disarmament saying about Sadaam’s WMD capability prior to GW2? Fact is they were saying there was no need to invade (beyond seizing the oil and making Iraq our base of operations in the middle east – of course).
Let us say Sadaam had magically hidden all those thousands of tons of giga-death that shrub and powell claimed he had? So what is the best way to ensure that these weapons are contained and do not reach the hands of dangerous peoples? Get the world behind an effort to disarm him and do it with full global support. See previous reference to UN weapons of mass delusion program. BTW I think Bush and Co have done a fantastic job of keeping North Korea from the nukular club. Presidential medals of FREEDOM®!!! all around. bravo
To sum up: furious george needed 9/11 to shore up his pathetic excuse for a presidency (see economy, social progress, law and order, tolerance, peace). He was planning this since before he came into office (all the neo-con American century jingoistic neo-fascists were to be more precise). If you don’t believe me (and I am pretty sure you don’t based on your posts), try reading the public statements of Paul O’Neill (republican btw). Or just stay in the O’Lie-ly zone on fauxNEWZ for that warm comfy “ahm a dumass redneck n proud ta be ignorant” feeling. History will not be kind to our little ‘misadventure’ or w.
Take away sentence? Clinton lied about his extramarrital affair, while Bush and co lied to get their war on.
and now to translate into robert/freeper-speak:
DaM joo iz stoopid! wtf iz wrong witchu? My 1337 preznit bubba PWNZ joo and furious george. You Traitorous sack of Rotten GaRbAge! W lied his dumb @$$ off and you slAckkkwits can’t eVen admit it. MB joo din’t pay attenshun dooring History 101 biatch, but AmeriKa was founded by disenterz and traitorz and deviantz (YEAH!!!! woot!) Ever heard of the BoSton Tea PaRty numskull? 1776? UR ass woulda worn a red coat + thrEatened Everyone with Hangin thAt dunt agree w Furious (king) Georgee. MB joo shud read the OTHER GooDe BooKE – the DICKshunary and look up the werds “liberal” and “conservative”. Stuff that in joo Crackpipe and smoke it ju terrarist fellating jingoistic (look thAt 1 up 2) mikrocephalik FuckTard!!!
I do hope that translated properly into your 1337-speak Dear rObErT. Babelfish has yet to install a English to Dumbass option, but with the ranks of you Gloriuz Kristian Soljers swelling every day, I am sure it is only a matter of time.
Have a nice day!
May 14th, 2005 at 1:15 pm
clarification:
“planning this since before he came into office”
refers to the Iraq invasion, not 9/11, cuz that would be TreAsOn!!!
an even more stupider ;-) than even these evil cretins would dare
or so I hope and pray…
May 15th, 2005 at 7:52 am
Hello Mr. enkidu,
No I did not volunteer for Millitary Service, I would have been like Carl Wilson. I have never had the American Flag outside or inside my house and I don’t plan to either. Mind you it’s a pretty Flag.
I did not rush to defend Bill Clinton in his Affair buisness, I don’t have a lot of respect for any man and/or Woman who cheats on their partner weather married or not.
No tears or springs came out of my eye as my son that I don’t even have did not even come home and Lip synch the American National Anthem and recited the pledge of allegence.
As for the rest of it, I basically still think that Iraq deserved to get the Shit blown out of them, they are allways causing trouble.
Sir. Dr.Robert…Dip ed, Bachelor Physics, M.B.E. O.B.E. Purple Heart etc….
May 18th, 2005 at 12:38 pm
Did anybody see the US Senate trying to grill Roger Galloway (The MP from the UK) over the UN Oil for Food program? He fired back and said to the US governemnt what the whole world is thinking, here is a little taste of what he had to say…
“I told the world that Iraq, contrary to your claims, did not have weapons of mass destruction. I told the world, contrary to your claims, that Iraq had no connection to al Qaeda. I told the world, contrary to your claims, that Iraq had no connection to the atrocity on 9/11, 2001,” he told Coleman.
“Senator, in everything I said about Iraq, I turned out to be right and you turned out to be wrong. And 100,000 people have paid with their lives — 1,600 of them American soldiers sent to their deaths on a pack of lies, 15,000 of them wounded, many of them disabled forever, on a pack of lies.”
He added: “Senator, this is the mother of all smokescreens. You are trying to divert attention from the crimes that you supported.”
Thank you, Mr, Galloway, for saying so clearly went many of us feel. I find it incredibley funny that the people that are trying to push blame for one scandal won’t acknowledge their own roles in an even bigger, more deadly scandal.
May 21st, 2005 at 3:31 am
That senator is FULL of Shit Rise !!!!!
June 2nd, 2005 at 4:09 pm
I’m sorry but all I got to say is that Bush Sucks!
June 9th, 2005 at 7:38 am
Actually it is “Whatever15” who Sucks!
Sucks up the wrong information !!!!!!!
George Bush is a True American Hero!!!!!!!!
Shame on you whatever, piece of shit.
October 27th, 2005 at 5:36 am
Well, If George W Bush is a Hero y dont he go n invade north korea. Korea is challenging US & Bush. ANd North America says that it has Nuclear powers and will also use them Do what ever Bushy can do LOLLOPLLLLLLLLL
October 26th, 2008 at 12:38 am
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