Some Desperately Missing Context
....for the Libby conviction and its transmogrification into a left-wing anti-war deux ex machina from Mary Mostert (reposted with permission).
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A couple of days ago I received one of the hundreds of e-mail I get on a seemingly regular basis that strikes me as being totally baseless, yet couched in language designed to proclaim a “truth” that brooks no debate. The e-mail stated: “Your point that if Bush lied so did congress fails to take into consideration that congress, like most Americans, did not know they were being lied to.”
This referred to a recent article I wrote that pointed out, for the umpteenth time that it was NOT President Bush, who “lied” about “Saddam Hussein” having weapons of mass destruction. In fact, it was simply "fact" during the Clinton administration that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. That was why Clinton kept sporactically bombing Iraq. Somehow now that notion has become a "lie" cooked up by President George W. Bush, and the poor misquided Congress, on the other hand, misled by the evil George W. Bush, was simply misled and passed resolutions to invade Iraq.
I pointed out that Congress, beginning in the Clinton administration, passed a series of resolutions, which are current law, outlining the threat to the region and the world coming from Saddam Hussein. In fact, during the ENTIRE Clinton administration, this was an issue that led to sporadic bomb attacks on various Saddam Hussein military units. No mention seems to EVER be made of this action – even by Democrats who fully supported Clinton’s actions. In 1998 the Congress passed resolution H.J. 54 that unequivocally makes the following statement: “Whereas Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threaten vital United States interests and international peace and security: Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Government of Iraq is in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations, and therefore the President is urged to take appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq into compliance with its international obligations.”
This resolution was UNANIMOUSLY approved by the U.S. Senate, and it passed in the House by a vote of 407 to 6. It was signed by President Clinton and is now Public Law. That means that every senator and nearly every congressman who is now in the Congress, if they were in Congress in 1998, and are complaining about the “President” lying about there being “weapons of mass destruction” in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq are actually referring to Bill Clinton, not George W. Bush. If they were “lied to” it was by Bill Clinton – not George W. Bush who was governor of Texas in 1998.
Among those who voted for that 1998 Resolution were the very same senators who today are trying to blame President Bush for US involvement in Iraq when they themselves voted UNANIMOUSLY for the 1998 resolution –two years BEFORE President Bush was elected.
Furthermore, their statements, now carefully unreported by a biased media, were as follows on the subject of Iraq and Weapons of Mass Destruction prior to the 2003 invasion portray massive hypocrisy or, we might say, simple lying by the current Bush bashers such as those who made the following statements about WMD in Iraq:
Senator [and President-in-waiting] Hillary Clinton (D-NY): "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." (Senator Hillary Clinton, Congressional Record, 10/10/02, p. S10288)
Senator John Kerry (D-MA): "When I vote 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...." (Senator John Kerry, Congressional Record, 10/9/02, p. S10174)
Senator John Kerry (D-MA): "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." (Senator John Kerry, Remarks At Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 1/23/03)
Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA): "We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." (Senator Edward Kennedy, Remarks At the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, 9/27/02)
Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV): "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..." ("Threats and Responses," The New York Times, 10/4/02)
Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV): "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." (Senator Jay Rockefeller, Congressional Record, 10/10/02, p. S10305)
Senator Carl Levin (D-MI): "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." (Senator Carl Levin, Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 9/19/02)
Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA): "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. The responsibility of the United States in this conflict is to eliminate weapons of mass destruction, to minimize the danger to our troops and to diminish the suffering of the Iraqi people." (Representative Nancy Pelosi, "Statement on U.S. Led Military Strike Against Iraq," Press Release, 12/16/98)
Former President Bill Clinton: "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." ("US: Clinton Says Diplomatic Solution Preferable In Iraq," AAP Newsfeed, 2/5/98)
Former Vice President Al Gore: "We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country." (Former Vice President Al Gore, Remarks At The Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, CA, 9/23/02)
Who exactly is it now that is lying to the public about Saddam Hussein and Weapons of Mass Destruction? The record is clear and is available in the Congressional Record and other official documents. There was apparent agreement among Al Gore, Bill Clinton, Senators Byrd, Reid, Kennedy, Levin, Kerry, Clinton, Rockefeller and current House Speaker Pelosi that those weapons existed in Saddam’s Iraq in 1998. So, how come they now accuse George Bush of lying if he agreed with them in 2002?
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The mother of all rhetorical questions....
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A couple of days ago I received one of the hundreds of e-mail I get on a seemingly regular basis that strikes me as being totally baseless, yet couched in language designed to proclaim a “truth” that brooks no debate. The e-mail stated: “Your point that if Bush lied so did congress fails to take into consideration that congress, like most Americans, did not know they were being lied to.”
This referred to a recent article I wrote that pointed out, for the umpteenth time that it was NOT President Bush, who “lied” about “Saddam Hussein” having weapons of mass destruction. In fact, it was simply "fact" during the Clinton administration that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. That was why Clinton kept sporactically bombing Iraq. Somehow now that notion has become a "lie" cooked up by President George W. Bush, and the poor misquided Congress, on the other hand, misled by the evil George W. Bush, was simply misled and passed resolutions to invade Iraq.
I pointed out that Congress, beginning in the Clinton administration, passed a series of resolutions, which are current law, outlining the threat to the region and the world coming from Saddam Hussein. In fact, during the ENTIRE Clinton administration, this was an issue that led to sporadic bomb attacks on various Saddam Hussein military units. No mention seems to EVER be made of this action – even by Democrats who fully supported Clinton’s actions. In 1998 the Congress passed resolution H.J. 54 that unequivocally makes the following statement: “Whereas Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threaten vital United States interests and international peace and security: Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Government of Iraq is in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations, and therefore the President is urged to take appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq into compliance with its international obligations.”
This resolution was UNANIMOUSLY approved by the U.S. Senate, and it passed in the House by a vote of 407 to 6. It was signed by President Clinton and is now Public Law. That means that every senator and nearly every congressman who is now in the Congress, if they were in Congress in 1998, and are complaining about the “President” lying about there being “weapons of mass destruction” in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq are actually referring to Bill Clinton, not George W. Bush. If they were “lied to” it was by Bill Clinton – not George W. Bush who was governor of Texas in 1998.
Among those who voted for that 1998 Resolution were the very same senators who today are trying to blame President Bush for US involvement in Iraq when they themselves voted UNANIMOUSLY for the 1998 resolution –two years BEFORE President Bush was elected.
Furthermore, their statements, now carefully unreported by a biased media, were as follows on the subject of Iraq and Weapons of Mass Destruction prior to the 2003 invasion portray massive hypocrisy or, we might say, simple lying by the current Bush bashers such as those who made the following statements about WMD in Iraq:
Senator [and President-in-waiting] Hillary Clinton (D-NY): "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." (Senator Hillary Clinton, Congressional Record, 10/10/02, p. S10288)
Senator John Kerry (D-MA): "When I vote 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...." (Senator John Kerry, Congressional Record, 10/9/02, p. S10174)
Senator John Kerry (D-MA): "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." (Senator John Kerry, Remarks At Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 1/23/03)
Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA): "We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." (Senator Edward Kennedy, Remarks At the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, 9/27/02)
Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV): "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..." ("Threats and Responses," The New York Times, 10/4/02)
Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV): "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." (Senator Jay Rockefeller, Congressional Record, 10/10/02, p. S10305)
Senator Carl Levin (D-MI): "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." (Senator Carl Levin, Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 9/19/02)
Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA): "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. The responsibility of the United States in this conflict is to eliminate weapons of mass destruction, to minimize the danger to our troops and to diminish the suffering of the Iraqi people." (Representative Nancy Pelosi, "Statement on U.S. Led Military Strike Against Iraq," Press Release, 12/16/98)
Former President Bill Clinton: "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." ("US: Clinton Says Diplomatic Solution Preferable In Iraq," AAP Newsfeed, 2/5/98)
Former Vice President Al Gore: "We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country." (Former Vice President Al Gore, Remarks At The Commonwealth Club, San Francisco, CA, 9/23/02)
Who exactly is it now that is lying to the public about Saddam Hussein and Weapons of Mass Destruction? The record is clear and is available in the Congressional Record and other official documents. There was apparent agreement among Al Gore, Bill Clinton, Senators Byrd, Reid, Kennedy, Levin, Kerry, Clinton, Rockefeller and current House Speaker Pelosi that those weapons existed in Saddam’s Iraq in 1998. So, how come they now accuse George Bush of lying if he agreed with them in 2002?
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The mother of all rhetorical questions....
posted by JASmius at 8:36 AM
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