IRAQ: Powell Defends Information He Used to Justify Iraq War

The New York Times International ^ | May 31, 2003 | JAMES DAO and THOM SHANKER

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

---

May 31, 2003

Powell Defends Information He Used to Justify Iraq War

By JAMES DAO and THOM SHANKER

ASHINGTON, May 30 — Secretary of State Colin L. Powell today fiercely defended the intelligence used by the Bush administration to justify war against Iraq, saying he spent several late nights poring over the Central Intelligence Agency's reports because he knew the credibility of the country and the president were at stake.

The C.I.A.'s prewar assessments have been sharply questioned by some intelligence officials and lawmakers in recent days, as American forces have uncovered only limited evidence of unconventional weapons programs and Iraqi ties to terrorists.

After complaints from intelligence officials that they felt Defense Department pressure to support the administration on Iraq, the C.I.A. has started a review to determine whether its prewar assessments of Saddam Hussein's weapons programs were accurate.

Another top official, George Tenet, the director of central intelligence, insisted today that his agency's work had not been compromised by politics.

"I'm enormously proud of the work of our analysts," he said in a statement. "The integrity of our process has been maintained throughout, and any suggestion to the contrary is simply wrong."

The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has also asked the agency to report on its Iraq intelligence, and may hold closed-door hearings on the issue, House officials said.

Mr. Powell used those assessments — along with satellite photographs and intercepted conversations between Iraqi military officers — in a dramatic presentation to the United Nations on Feb. 5, when he argued that Iraq's weapons programs and links to Al Qaeda made it an imminent threat to the world.

Asked today if he thought those assessments had been politicized to bolster the administration's call to arms, Mr. Powell said no, calling it "solid information" based on multiple sources presented to him by unbiased analysts.

"I went out to the C.I.A., and I spent four days and four nights going over everything that they had," Mr. Powell told reporters traveling on Air Force One to Poland. For three consecutive nights, the chore kept him at the agency until midnight, he said. "I knew that it was the credibility of the United States that was going to be on the line on the fifth of February. The credibility of the president of the United States and my credibility."

At the time, Mr. Powell was widely viewed as the most cautious member of President Bush's national security team on Iraq, and his urgent presentation to the United Nations in February was intended to provide an extra layer of credibility to the administration's case for war.

Mr. Powell argued today that the accuracy of the prewar assessments was proven by the discovery of two Iraqi trailers that the C.I.A. and Pentagon have concluded were designed to produce deadly germs. Mr. Powell presented drawings of suspected mobile biological labs to the United Nations in February.

"You should have seen the smile on my face when one day the intelligence community came in and gave me a photo, and said, `Look,' " Mr. Powell said today. "And it was almost identical to the cartoon that I had put up in New York on the Fifth of February."

But doubts about the accuracy of the prewar intelligence have spread in Congress. In a letter sent last week to George J. Tenet, the director of central intelligence, the House Intelligence Committee said it intended "to re-evaluate" American intelligence on Iraq's weapons programs and links to terrorists.

"The committee wants to ensure that the intelligence analysis relayed to our policymakers from the intelligence community was accurate, unbiased and timely," said the letter, signed by the committee's Republican chairman, Representative Porter J. Goss of Florida, and ranking Democrat, Representative Jane Harman of California.

A senior military commander on the ground in Iraq also told reporters today that he was surprised that Iraq never fired chemical or biological weapons as American forces drove for Baghdad, and was equally surprised that none of these weapons had yet been found.

"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," said Lt. Gen. James Conway, commander of the First Marine Expeditionary Force. "Again, believe me, it's not for lack of trying."

Speaking to Pentagon reporters in a video teleconference from Iraq, General Conway said, "What the regime was intending to do in terms of its use of the weapons, we thought we understood."

He added, "We were simply wrong."

[StringTheory]

Great read...

But what I don't get is why we conservatives are actually discussing the whole weapons of mass distruction issue. Bush said it himself. The Iraq war was not only to prevent Saddam from using his weapons. But this was also the next step in the war against terrorism. And if any liberal jackass tries to contradict you, just mention Saddams funding of the sucide bomber families... If that's not supporting terrorism... I don't know what is?

[bushfamfan]

So the news breaks here on Free Republic. That's big. The media and Demonrats can just continue discrediting themselves. It just goes to show you with the way they twisted Wolfowitz's words to their story on how Powell had 'serious doubts' just shows how much they are willing to lie and make up. It's the NY Times all over again and it's all the liberal organizations that have such a problem with the truth. Notice how the media doesn't care how they've already released info on the two mobile biological labs, like it's nothing! Now if this turns out to be true, which it likely because there's no doubt Iraq had weapons of mass destruction-they all know it. The only thing I worried about is that we gave the Iraqi regime so much time to move them to Syria, etc. or get rid of them prior to us actually taking action.

[grania]

I can't wait for all the silence coming from these leftist had wringers when the WMD's are found

The reality is that if they're found this late, after all of the media questioning about their existance, there will be accusations of them being planted.

Maybe the powers-that-be should look at the sources of their information. Just to make sure none of it came from parties that had an axe to grind against the Iraqui government.

[MizSterious]

I maintain they have been found. Mustard gas and other poisons in the Tigris River, rolling chemical labs (weather balloons my foot), chem suits and atropine injector stockpiles--what do people think all of that was for? Why isn't the administration harping on these finds, instead of just sitting back and taking all this criticism?

Iraq had the weapons, some were dumped into the Tigris (and who knows where else), some are hidden away in the desert somewhere, some were doubtless moved across the Iranian and Syrian borders. But they had them, they threatened to use them, and they planned to use them. Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to the trouble of providing chem suits and atropine injectors.

[Galtoid]

I just cannot help but think that the stupid diplomatic dance we performed with the UN resolutions, was a perfect time for Saddam to get his house in order, and to either transport the weapons to Syria, or something else like that.
Colin Powell insisted that we get the international community behind us, which was as slow as molasses. All those weeks of delay were a gift to Saddam.
Think back to Bush's appearance throughout that stupid UN fiasco. I remember thinking he was fighting an unbelievable amount of rage within. Now we know why.

[grania]

I suspect your explanation is valid. I'm wondering if the delay wasn't time to win over a few more Iraqui military leaders.

The problem with that is, if they no longer existed, it negated the reason given to be there in the first place. And, the next thing, liberating the Iraquis...well, I doubt letting a Shiite majority vote for their government was on the screen.

This incursion and the one in Afghanistan will be up to history to judge. But, it'll be hard. You can't evaluate what didn't happen. I suspect that disrupting the flow of things in these Mideast hotbeds stopped at least some terrorist acts.

Meanwhile, something has to be done to stabilize the region. I'm glad GWB is now bringing up the Palestinian issue and insisting the Israelis come along for the ride.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Well I actually got a clue from Drudge!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

The problem with that is, if they no longer existed, it negated the reason given to be there in the first place.

So you are buying into the Leftists argument that finding the WMD was the only reason to be there?

[grania]

So you are buying into the Leftists argument that finding the WMD was the only reason to be there?

I'm stating that the Weapons of Mass Destruction are the persuasive argument that Colin Powell used to support going into Iraq.

[Stuckathome]

Very true. The fact is, the anti war crowd are jumping all over this WMD issue because that is their only meal ticket now. The anti war crowd became very silent once they realized that the war effort went relatively smoothly, and now that the major fighting is over they are now jumping on the WMD bandwagon to 'save face.'

I have been debating this war on Iraq issue on another message board since last year, and all the anti war posters on the other site never mentioned WMD or lack of evidence thereof for their anti war stance. They protested the war mainly because it was an illegal "imperialistic" and aggresive action against an innocent Iraqi people. In fact, these anti war people were the very ones blathering about how the U.N. inspections were working and for Bush and company to give them more time.

The war on Iraq wasn't only about WMD, it was also about human rights violations in Iraq (one of the worst in the world) and the ongoing war against terrorism.

I'm sure the anti war crowd are going to be all over this new round of "evidence proving" that Powell and others had serious doubts about the WMD evidence. Of course these same hypocrites were the first ones to decry new found evidence of mobile weapons labs and whatnot, whining about not jumping to conclusions and so darned eager to discredit the source of the information.

It's a lose lose situation in my book.

[BOBTHENAILER]

Bush has been skilled at the "rope-a-dope" strategy whereby he allows the opposition just enough rope to hang themselves. Could this just be another round of it?

All in due time, my friends, all in due time. They'll let the leftist shouting get shrill enough and loud enough, then the WMD's will start to appear. We may even go into Syria and the Bekaa valley to get some more of them and do a little house cleaning at the same time.

Hezbollah and Hamas have been asking for a party for a long time and we might just give 'em one. Wouldn't hurt the "Road Map" plans either.

my penny's worth of thoughts.

[tet68]

Re;the road map

They didn't notice that the Bush Expressway went by way of
Afghanastan,Iraq, Iran, and Syria, with a lot of demolition
and paving work yet to do.

[BOBTHENAILER]

They didn't notice that the Bush Expressway went by way of Afghanastan,Iraq, Iran, and Syria, with a lot of demolition and paving work yet to do.

By the time they DO notice, the landscape over there will be quite different.

[BOBTHENAILER]

Blair publicly made that assertion as he argued Saddam had to be tackled. But he was unrepentant on Sunday.

"Those people who are sitting there saying 'Oh it is all going to be proved to be a great big fib got out by the security services, there will be no weapons of mass destruction', just wait and have a little patience," he said.

"I certainly do know some of the stuff that has already been accumulated...which is not yet public but what we are going to do is assemble that evidence and present it properly."

This is an exceprt from a Drudge article quoting Tony Blair. Proof positive that evidence will be forthcoming, much to the chagrin of the whining RATs and those who buy their lies.

Won't be long before the "I Told You So's" can commence. The RATs fall for it every time. Pinging Sen. KKK Byrd

[Destro]

Forged documents that USA used to build its case against Iraq tied to Niger Embassy in Rome

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the link. and of course neither the US nor Britain were involved in the Forgery as the article states!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

And this just in:

Blair Says Iraq Weapons Secrets Will Be Publicized - Insists Announcment Will Be Made Soon

[Destro]

I hope they don't plagiarize it like the last British report.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

And from U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT:

Truth and consequences - Colin Powell on Saddam's Misdeed Speech to U.N. - "This is Bulls---"