To point fingers in a circular fashion at the press, or Congress for this fiasco is delusional. The decision to go to war was solely Mr. Bush’s. He had a variety of different options and he chose war…

Today the press, and indeed segments of the blogosphere such as Mr. Joiner keep obfuscating this simple fact: Mr. Bush chose to go to war.

That the press failed to adequately report, there is no doubt. That Mr. Bush received editorial and corporate support when he initiated the war is irrefutable. That the press is continuing to blandly report distortion or lies by the administration cannot be argued. See my above comments on Ms. Rice’s recent statements.

Thus, when davod presents “reasons” why Mr. Bush took us to war, he is excusing poor judgment because Mr. Bush had alternatives. When davod links to Bender Associates (a Public Relations firm), who are fluffing Richard O. Spertzel, he truly has drank liberally from the dark sides brew…

From 1994 to 1998 Spertzel served as the Senior Biologist for the United Nations Special Commission in Iraq. His strongly misleading Congressional testimonial about the WMD capabilities of Iraq[2] helped to justify the subsequent US invasion of Iraq. After the invasion, Spertzel was a member of the Iraq Survey Group, which found that Iraq was not producing nor planning to produce WMD at the time of the invasion.

Why is this important? Think Iran…

You need to understand the mindset of the person your are trying convey a message to, if it's full of hatred and concocted reasons for this hatred its a hard thing to get a point past.

President Bush in similar circumstances opted for war.

how similar, we were still at war with Iraq, thats what a cease fire means, multiple resolutions saying or else, shooting daily at our jets was violation enough to restore hostilities and should have been years before Iraqi Freedom.

So if the WMD was found, or indeed used on our troops, Bush's judgment would still be in doubt.

The simple fact is that the Administration, and the Congress, argued that leaving Saddam in power was an unacceptable risk.

The Duelfer report (Comprehensive Report of the Special Adviser to the DCI on Iraq's WMD _ Central Intelligence Agency) and Kaye's testimony, confirmed that Saddam retained the capability to produce WMD, including nuclear. Indeed small scale Chem-Bio facilities were found.

For a brief summary of the report you may wish to read HAVE WAR CRITICS EVEN READ THE DUELFER REPORT?
by Richard O. Spertzel,Wall two Street Journal,
October 14, 2004.

Mr. Spertzel, head of the biological-weapons section of Unscom from 1994-99, just returned from Iraq [at the time the article was written], where he has been a member of the Iraq Survey Group (ISG).

The reality is not whether the intelligence about WMD was correct or not, the issue is President Bush's judgement.

A simple example will suffice. Faced with clear evidence of missals in Cuba, President Kennedy had a multitude of options. He rejected Curtis LeMay's recommendation to nuke the Island, turned down the recommendation of the Pentegan to invade, and opted for a blockade.

President Bush in similar circumstances opted for war. I stand by my May 30, 2008 | 01:14 pm post

World>Terrorism & Security
posted November 21, 2005 at 11:00 a.m.

GERMANY: CIA KNEW 'CURVEBALL' WAS NOT TRUSTWORTHY
German intelligence alleges Bush administration repeatedly 'exaggerated' informant's claims in run-up to war.
By Tom Regan | csmonitor.com

Five top German intelligence officers say that the Bush administration and the CIA repeatedly ignored warnings about the veracity of the information that an Iraqi informant named 'Curveball' was giving about Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. The Los Angeles Times, in a massive report published Sunday, reports that "the Bush administration and the CIA repeatedly exaggerated his claims during the run-up to the war in Iraq." They also say that 'Curveball,' whom the Germans described as "not a psychologically stable guy," never claimed that he had produced germ weapons, nor had he ever seen anyone do it.

According to the Germans, President Bush mischaracterized Curveball's information when he warned before the war that Iraq had at least seven mobile factories brewing biological poisons. Then-Secretary of State Colin L. Powell also misstated Curveball's accounts in his prewar presentation to the United Nations on Feb. 5, 2003, the Germans said.
Curveball's German handlers for the last six years said his information was often vague, mostly secondhand and impossible to confirm. "This was not substantial evidence," said a senior German intelligence official. "We made clear we could not verify the things he said."

Complete story at:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1121/dailyUpdate.html

To this day the Brits stand by their yellow cake, if thats what it was, warning. By the way, Wilson's report to the CIA tended to confirm the suggestion that Saddam was trying to get materials (See the 9/11 report).

WRT Curveball. I know we have to take what author's write with with a grain of salt but the recent book on Curveball shows that the Germans made no attempt to warn the US about Curvball. However, the fact that the Germas would not let any of the US Intelligence agencies speak to Curveball should have been a warning.

As far as the IAEA is concerned, much like now, the hierarchy seems to believe their role is to prevent, or delay, action against nations not meting their obligations.

Nothing disproves the previous comments that most international intelligence agencies agreed that Saddam had WMD and would use them if attacked.

Indeed, intercepted communications show that Saddam's generals were asking when they would get the WMD so they could defend Baghdad.

the took 2 of some kind of pills= I think all you liberals are on drugs cause when I thought in this type of crazy I was.

call me in the Monday morning quarterback=that you guys are sure good at whining and acting like you new better before hand but mostly you just starting to believe in the reasons you made up to aggravate the situation as the cause of the situation but I dint give you the drugs I'm not your Doctor or some one who cares to here you bullshit for the billionth time.

all knowing all seeing better then you liberals=what you all believe yourselves to be.

a rambling, incoherent, ungrammatical rant!

A circle has no beginning and no end

Sounds like Asimov to me...

In reply to your May 30, 2008 | 02:17 pm | post, where you ask: OK, who said otherwise?

First of all, there is a fair amount of intelligence sharing between Western Nations, with such information being passed on, even if individual nations analysis indicated the information to be bogus. That is the way the game is played.

In regard to the yellow cake matter, which of course was part of the great mushroom cloud in the sky, there is clear evidence that the Italian Intelligence Agency felt this was nonsense and the British felt it was bogus. That Iraq was seeking yellow cake to develop nuclear weapons was enunciated by the President, and never retracted.

In regard to biological WMD, the Germans passed on the allegations of “Curveball”, with a strong warning that the man was a fabricator. The administration pressured Collin Powell to include this information in his presentation to the UN.

It is accepted by all, except the most dense ideological minds, that the International Atomic Energy Agency and Hans Blix, the United Nations Chief Weapons Inspector, had access to all pertinent information from our, and foreign countries Intelligence Services. Both indicated that there was no evidence of an active nuclear or biological program in Iraq right up to the day Mr. Bush pulled the lever to the greatest light show since “Strange Encounters of a Third Kind”. Played out on CNN, I believe it was titled “Shock and Awe”…

Now then, a fertile and inquiring mind expands its horizon by testing its preferred and seductive proposition. In your case, “All foreign countries Intelligence Services agreed that Sadam had Weapons of Mass Destruction”. I have presented evidence to the contrary, above.

Your task sir, is simple. You can come in through a different door. Show me one instance where any country’s leader stood up and said (I paraphrase): “Our Intelligence indicates that Sadam has Weapons of Mass Destruction “ .

Until you can disprove my formulation, or present the information I have requested, I stand by my post. To wit: Ms. Rice’s statement is totally inaccurate, the press is unwilling to report it as such…

A circle has no beginning and no end.

It's what centrists do.

So where is Bush as a centrist... Somewhere between Stalin and bozo the clown?

Which suggests you are working under the idea that those targets were not available prior to say, 9/11? Are you serious?

Those targets (US soldiers in Iraq) were indeed not available until 2003.

And Thanks for deciphering that liberal thought for me, it was a classically weak insult, I get it now.

Go back and read what you wrote:

lol, the took 2 of some kind of pills call me in the Monday morning quarterback, all knowing all seeing better then you liberals

And tell me what the hell that was supposed to mean.