Monday, June 09, 2003
WMD fraud an impeachable offense?
Dig into that question
Finally, I explained to the students that the political risk was so great that, to me, it was inconceivable that Bush would make these statements if he didn't have damn solid intelligence to back him up. Presidents do not stick their necks out only to have them chopped off by political opponents on an issue as important as this, and if there was any doubt, I suggested, Bush's political advisers would be telling him to hedge. Rather than stating a matter as fact, he would be say: "I have been advised," or "Our intelligence reports strongly suggest," or some such similar hedge. But Bush had not done so......
It's important to recall that when Richard Nixon resigned, he was about to be impeached by the House of Representatives for misusing the CIA and FBI. After Watergate, all presidents are on notice that manipulating or misusing any agency of the executive branch improperly is a serious abuse of presidential power.
Nixon claimed that his misuses of the federal agencies for his political purposes were in the interest of national security. The same kind of thinking might lead a President to manipulate and misuse national security agencies or their intelligence to create a phony reason to lead the nation into a politically desirable war. Let us hope that is not the case.
In this article the Members of the Bush adminstration defend use of intelligence.
C. Rice:
"There's a very large body of evidence here that connects together to paint a picture of a very dangerous regime with very dangerous weapons that had deceived the world for 12 years, that had allowed international sanctions to stay on, rather than come clean about what it was doing," she said.
If the Bush administration presented their case that Iraq had WMD and an active WMD program to the public in a misleading way then finding WMD in Iraq will NOT vindicate the Bush administration.
I hope if there are weapons they are found, it will vindicate America and our allies in this war.
I hope Bush did not manipulate and mislead Congress, the American public and the world about the quality and certainty of the intelligence and evidence that Iraq had WMD. I hope their is classified evidence we have not seen that will vindicate Bush.
So far the evidence the administration has used has been debunked or deemed unreliable.
Dig into that question
Finally, I explained to the students that the political risk was so great that, to me, it was inconceivable that Bush would make these statements if he didn't have damn solid intelligence to back him up. Presidents do not stick their necks out only to have them chopped off by political opponents on an issue as important as this, and if there was any doubt, I suggested, Bush's political advisers would be telling him to hedge. Rather than stating a matter as fact, he would be say: "I have been advised," or "Our intelligence reports strongly suggest," or some such similar hedge. But Bush had not done so......
It's important to recall that when Richard Nixon resigned, he was about to be impeached by the House of Representatives for misusing the CIA and FBI. After Watergate, all presidents are on notice that manipulating or misusing any agency of the executive branch improperly is a serious abuse of presidential power.
Nixon claimed that his misuses of the federal agencies for his political purposes were in the interest of national security. The same kind of thinking might lead a President to manipulate and misuse national security agencies or their intelligence to create a phony reason to lead the nation into a politically desirable war. Let us hope that is not the case.
In this article the Members of the Bush adminstration defend use of intelligence.
C. Rice:
"There's a very large body of evidence here that connects together to paint a picture of a very dangerous regime with very dangerous weapons that had deceived the world for 12 years, that had allowed international sanctions to stay on, rather than come clean about what it was doing," she said.
If the Bush administration presented their case that Iraq had WMD and an active WMD program to the public in a misleading way then finding WMD in Iraq will NOT vindicate the Bush administration.
I hope if there are weapons they are found, it will vindicate America and our allies in this war.
I hope Bush did not manipulate and mislead Congress, the American public and the world about the quality and certainty of the intelligence and evidence that Iraq had WMD. I hope their is classified evidence we have not seen that will vindicate Bush.
So far the evidence the administration has used has been debunked or deemed unreliable.
