Rice rejects outside probe of Iraq intel ("current reviews sufficient")

[kysrsoze]

WASHINGTON - President Bush’s national security adviser on Thursday rejected calls for an independent investigation of apparently faulty intelligence on Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction program, noting the CIA is conducting its own intelligence review and the hunt for the illegal arms has not ended.

Taking issue with former weapons inspector David Kay, Condoleezza Rice said current efforts to assess the data-gathering operation are sufficient. “No one will want to know more than the president the comparison between what we found when we got there and what we thought was there going in,” Rice said on NBC’s “Today” show.

Asked if she thought the American people have a legitimate concern about whether intelligence was manipulated to justify the decision to go to war, Rice replied, “The president’s judgment to go to the war was based on the fact that Saddam Hussein for 12 years had defied U.N. resolutions” regarding his stock of weapons.

‘It was time to take care of that danger’
The administration also went to war, she said, “because this was a dangerous man in the world’s most dangerous region. He had been considered a danger for a long time and it was time to take care of that danger.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4049012/


This is going to get interesting....

[hang a left]

1. Well what would you expect from Sleezy?

[tom_paine]

17. I would expect Sleezy Rice to lie and obstruct justice

Nice to know I won't be disappointed.

[displacedtexan]

2. Wolf Blitzer's lead story at noon (EST)

ad said something about political fallout.

[montanacowboy]

3. Danger, danger, danger

does this bimbo know another word?

[underpants]

13. Danger!! I love the writing on this and the quote

The administration also went to war (in case you mised them not mentioning it before), she said, “because this was a dangerous man in the world’s most dangerous region. He had been considered a danger for a long time and it was time to take care of that danger.”

[LiberalFighter]

41. Was she talking about her boss?

Or will Americans think she is talking about her boss? I hope so!!

[Just Me]

28. She is totally sounding like a broken record,...

,...and she has completely lost all credibility. This woman sold her integrity some time ago. Wonder if she will soon have to bear her own "scarlet letter",..."T" for traitor to the American people who put so much faith in her. No honorable mentions for this souless one. She simply did not have the courage to do the right thing!!!

[UpInArms]

31. pardon me for asking, but

when did KindaSleaza have integrity?

[0007]

39. When she got her first pint of oil!

[Cooley Hurd]

4. "And who knew they'd use airplanes as missles, anyway?"

Her credibility is shot at this point. To paraphrase her boss, "who cares what she thinks?"

[RobertSeattle]

5. She must not have gotten the Memo

I was flipping around the AM radio this morning and it seemed like "en masse" the RW talk show hosts are asking for an "independent" outside probe of Iraq pre-war intel. Obviously they want to place blame on the CIA and far away for the White House, because the buck can never stop there.

[Wetzelbill]

6. she's completely nuts just like the rest of 'em

[TacticalPeek]

7. Calm down, Condi. Its not like its an alien probe or anything.

And you got nothing to hide, right?

[lovedems]

8. The president didn't take us to war because of defiance of UN resolutions

He took us to war because they KNEW where the WMD's were, they KNEW how much he had, they KNEW what he had! I am so sick of the complacency in which this administration changes their mind and reasons mid-stream and most people are ok with that!

[LiberalFighter]

42. What the hell did Condi KNOW?

I bet she KNEW a lot. Probably KNEW more than what she should had known.

Everyone in the administration should be tried for treason!

[The_Casual_Observer]

9. Rice should have been fired after 9-11

But the "stay the course - don't deviate or show weakness" plan won out.

"fact that Saddam Hussein for 12 years had defied U.N. resolutions” regarding his stock of weapons"

This is not a FACT & the FACT is that there were no weapons. When are they going to be forced to get off of this?

[Chico Man]

26. "National Security Advisor"

You are right: it is obvious. She did not advise well at all when it came to National Security. Heads should have rolled. She is EVIL.

[cybildisobedience]

10. probably a stupid question....

But if the CIA was so incompetent in the run-up to the war (as Rice, et. al., allege), what kind of confidence are we to have in this so-called self-investigation?
Is it me?
Seriously, is it me?

[underpants]

16. That's a very good question

They are going to try to pin this on the CIA but they will accept the review from the same organization as if it were written in stone.......but the review may not be as bad for the CIA as they expect in which case they have a built in spin. Hmmmm. Also IMHO they starting smearing the name of the CIA months ago to pre-empt anything that comes out of the 9/11 investigations.

Psst don't expect the report from the CIA to say "Ooops it was us sorry we screwed up".

[BlueStateGirl]

25. So basically, she ( and this administration) is saying

That every piece of intel that came across the president's desk was wrong, stretching all the way to the Clinton administration? That they were all misled?
I heard David Kay say yesterday, that it appeared that he hadn't had WMD since 1995. So, everything the last 8 years has been FUBAR?
That there wasn't one piece of evidence that indicated maybe he DIDN'T have anything?
If that's the case, I want the CIA dismantled. I want a complete review of military intelligence gathering capabilities, because this is greatest example of incompetence I have ever witnessed.

So, if they were so wrong about Iraq, how can we trust them with anything???

They'd be better off hanging Cheney or Rummy out to dry on this one.


I can't believe the press is eating this bullshit up.

[colonel odis]

11. i'd really be wary of pissing off the cia.

they've taken an awful lot of heat for this administration. i would imagine you can make them a scapegoat a time or two. and the good soldiers will fall on their swords.

but should they decide it's payback time, bush is f*cked in a way he's never been before.

[UpInArms]

12. also need to consider

that the WH outed a CIA agent and is fighting the investigation on that issue.

[alittlelark]

14. George Tenet will be before the 9-11 commission

around March 7 - will he fall on the sword again, or throw a dagger at the WH? It should be interesting.

[LiberalFighter]

43. What about the warning by the CIA about Niger?

Condi and Bush ignored the CIA's warning that there was no truth regarding the Niger claim as investigated by Wilson.

[chelsea0011]

15. Talking Points

Everyone in the administration always begins with "well, we know that Saddam used WMD on his own people", as Condi Baloney stated first and foremost in her interview this morning. Remind everyone of Sadam's evil and the American people will forget the reasons given to go to war. What really galled me this morning was her use of the word everyone as in, "everyone was wrong about the intelligence". Well, no, you are wrong. As in thousands protested the start of the war because they were concerned about the need and reasons being presented,and democrats stated they saw the same intelligence as the White House and had different conclusions, as in Paul O'Neill asking at the very first NSC meeting as how Tenant knows that those buildings(he just happened to show up with a map showing Saddam using buildings for crating weapons) are producing chemical weapons, as in Scott Ritter stating that 90% of the weapons were destoyed after the Gulf War and they won't find many if any weapons, as in.......oh, never mind it was everyone was wrong.

[underpants]

19. Lauer asked her about trusting intel on Iran and No.Korea NOW

She didn't seem very prepped for that one so she just kept saying ~"Bad man evil man gased his own people 12 years of ignoring the UN...."

Welcome to DU :hi:

The thing that Ritter said (In Pitt's book- got that one?)was something that was never repeated again in any discussion going up to the war (at least that I heard): the shelf life on Chemical and especially biological weapons. These things don't last for ever and the shelf life is determined by the way they are made and stored. Well UNSCOM not only destroyed 95-98% of the Saddam's ability to make it but completely destroyed his ability to store it. This talk of mobile labs scares the dickens out of people but having to constantly move around you necessarily are destroying your ability to store these volatile fragile mixtures as they should be. No one ever wanted to tell the 'Murkan people about that and that basically unless Saddam was able to make these things with no one noticing he was probably out save for VX but then he probably wouldn't have much of that left.

[BigBigBear]

27. That's a great point underpants

I have used it in a few of my online brawls on the subject - pretty much nothing that existed in 1991 would be usable at this time, and there is NO evidence he produced any more.

When I hear the freepers say "We KNOW he had WMD's, every KNEW he had WMD...", we need to remind them that UNSCOM documented the destruction of vast quantities of the stuff, and all that was really left was stuff that had not been adequately or satisfactorily documented.

Glen Rangwala's (sp?) website is an invaluable resource for this subject.

[underpants]

29. Thanks

After I read that book (I am going to reread it to see exactly how ON Ritter was) I waited and waited for someone to mention the "shelf life" of these things. Like I said it never was mentioned no one with the expertise was allowed anywhere near a TV camera and the 'Murkan people were never told that these aren't like bullets or bombs that will last a long time they are chemical compounds and the like.

The best comparison is to milk or mayonnaise-IF stored in a refridgerator that never experiences a power outage they STILL do not last forever.

That one argument could have staved off this war for long enough for inspectors to find what it abundantly clear now and should have been then.

[LiberalFighter]

44. There is a distinction between HAD and HAS

They keep using the past tense HAD about WMD. DUHHHHH I had $5 yesterday but I spent it on gas. I don't have that $5 anymore and the gas will get used up everytime I use the car. Even gas has a short shelf life that is less then WMD.

[doubleyoi]

47. has got to be emphasized...

again and again, they ALWAYS say "had". It's like they don't even realize they're saying it anymore. We KNOW Iraq had them, even a nincompoop like Lauer should correct them on that. Is it me, or did it seem like every time Clinton had to take a leak they'd have someone from his staff announce he was taking said leak, and then whatever show they were on would immediatey present someone from the Repuke party to say "now is not the time for the president to be taking this leak blah blah"
What happened to that? Now it's "okay Dr Rice, thanks for lying to us today, now back to Katie with the latest from the Jackson trial.."

[nomatrix]

32. Welcome

There is one place that dispels all reason for this invasion.

Prior to Clinton there was Bush I


Iran-lraq War and U.S. Strategy


"The Bush administration has never presented any evidence whatsoever for its charges that Iraq used poison gas on its own citizens. Rather it has simply repeated the charges over and over in the press. This event is analyzed in considerable detail in a study published by the Army War College called, Iraqi Power and U.S. Security in the Middle East. The authors of that study conclude that the charges were false but used by the U.S. government to change public opinion toward Iraq. They even go so far as to suggest a conspiracy against Iraq: "The whole episode of seeking to impose sanctions on Iraq for something that it may not have done would be regrettable but not of great concern were this an isolated event. Unfortunately, there are other areas of friction developing between our two countries.''

http://www.deoxy.org/wc/warcrime.htm

[pinto]

36. Condi, if "everyone" was wrong, an independent review would bear that out,

wouldn't it????

Welcome to DU, Feeney2
:thumbsup:

[daleo]

18. She has totally abandoned reason and common sense

"“The president’s judgment to go to the war was based on the fact that Saddam Hussein for 12 years had defied U.N. resolutions” regarding his stock of weapons."

- If he had no weapons of mass destruction (as they are now admitting), how could he defy U.N. resolutions about them? Especially given the fact that U.N. inspectors were allowed in, and given pretty much free rein, particularly at the end.

"‘It was time to take care of that danger’
The administration also went to war, she said, “because this was a dangerous man in the world’s most dangerous region. He had been considered a danger for a long time and it was time to take care of that danger.”"

- If he had no weapons of mass destruction (as they are now admitting), how could present a danger to the U.S. or U.K.? Why was it time to take care of danger, when there was no danger to take care of?

[underpants]

20. Danger? maybe the air force under sand and the cannabalized armour

divisions????

[SmokeyBlues]

21. Danger?

Nah, the danger Condi was referring to was the old ham bone found in that one Iraqi scientist's backyard. Split pea and ham soup anyone?

[UpInArms]

22. I thought it was the

room full of vaccuum cleaners :crazy:

[SmokeyBlues]

23. Oh yeah!

I forgot about those. Thanks for reminding me!

B-)

[bahrbearian]

24. You mean there were U.N. Weapons Inspections in Iraq ?

no one ever told Chimpy.

[yellowcanine]

30. "Oh, well, now isn't that special?"

said the Church Lady. (SNL Dana Carvey)

[pinto]

33. Mr Kays assertion that an independent investigation would

provide some assurances to the American public about the future use of intel apparently doesn't carry much weight with the Admin that is so thankful for his service to the country.

[diamond14]

34. list of intelligence agencies/dates telling bush*: "NO WMD in Iraq (link)

A chronology of how the Bush Administration repeatedly and deliberately refused to listen to intelligence agencies that said its case for war was weak

January 28, 2004
Download: DOC, PDF, RTF

Former weapons inspector David Kay now says Iraq probably did not have WMD before the war, a major blow to the Bush Administration which used the WMD argument as the rationale for war. Unfortunately, Kay and the Administration are now attempting to shift the blame for misleading America onto the intelligence community. But a review of the facts shows the intelligence community repeatedly warned the Bush Administration about the weakness of its case, but was circumvented, overruled, and ignored. The following is year-by-year timeline of those warnings.

2001: WH Admits Iraq Contained; Creates Agency to Circumvent Intel Agencies

In 2001 and before, intelligence agencies noted that Saddam Hussein was effectively contained after the Gulf War. In fact, former weapons inspector David Kay now admits that the previous policy of containment – including the 1998 bombing of Iraq – destroyed any remaining infrastructure of potential WMD programs.

and lots more............

http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=24889

[myrna minx]

35. Condi, was it bad intelligence or was it looting?

:shrug: Sheesh...get your story straight.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=1066407&mesg_id=1066407

[LiberalFighter]

45. She probably trying to prolong the ecstasy she experiences

with the dim wit. Trying to outdo Monica and make a mark in history.

[DoYouEverWonder]

37. Since when does the guilty party

get to dictate what should and shouldn't be investigated and by whom?

It's like letting Ted Bundy pick the judge, prosecution and jury for his murder trials?

[underpants]

38. Same goes for them setting the parameters in the Plame investigatioin

They were really out in front (after it became an issue) on telling the press that they would turn over all relevant information (after they waited 24 hours to send the memo)and that anything else was *gasp* political.

[Snappy]

40. Sleazy Rice

This woman has a Phd. from Stanford. She just can't be that stupid. The deal is: She thinks the American public is stupid. She may be right. ;(

[LiberalFighter]

46. Stanford should revoke her degree