US 'discussing Iraq regime change' two years before war

[cal04]

Source: The Independent

Elements of the new US administration of President George Bush were already discussing "regime change" in Iraq two years before the invasion of 2003, the official inquiry into the war was told today.

Sir Peter Ricketts, who was chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee in 2001, said there was concern in both London and Washington that the strategy of "containment" of Saddam Hussain was "failing".

Giving evidence at the first public hearings of the inquiry, he said a review of the Iraq policy was already under way in Whitehall in anticipation of the arrival of the new Bush administration.

He said that, in discussions with Secretary of State Colin Powell, it appeared the Americans were "thinking very much on the same lines".

Read more: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-discussing-iraq-regime-change-two-years-before-war-1826635.html

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/blog/2009/nov/24/chilcot-inquiry-iraq-war
live blogging of the inquiry

[Turbineguy]

1. Bush said he would invade Iraq

when he was campaigning. It was always a foregone conclusion.

[RomanceWritR]

2. Regime Change

Regime change in Iraq was the official policy of the US under the Clinton Administration.

[RomanceWritR]

3. Backup

The Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 is a United States Congressional statement of policy calling for regime change in Iraq.<1><2> It was signed into law by President Bill Clinton.

[Soylent Brice]

5. i would edit your original reply.

[Soylent Brice]

4. funny how you worded that. you're referring to the The Iraq Liberation Act of 1998

funny enough:

"The Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 is a United States Congressional statement of policy calling for regime change in Iraq.<1><2> It was signed into law by President Bill Clinton."

*snip*

The Act declared that it was the Policy of the United States to support "regime change." The Act was passed 360-38 in the U.S. House of Representatives <3> and by unanimous consent in the Senate. <4> US President Bill Clinton signed the bill into law on October 31, 1998.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Liberation_Act

so.... pretty funny how you spun that. see, congress passed this, and it also passed unanimously in the senate. you make it sound like Clinton was some sort of boogeyman prequel to shrub.
so, wanna try again?

[zelta gaisma]

7. Don't you know...

rains, hurricanes, recessions, stubbing your toe...it's ALL Clinton's fault!

[Soylent Brice]

11. i know, right?

[tom_paine]

15. no, they dont want to try again - they dropped their propaganda bomb & ran, as usual

[Hell Hath No Fury]

12. That is true.

The real question is would Clinton have fabricated evidence to support an illegal invasion into Iraq? That would be a "no".

Wanting regime chance and using military force to do so are two very different things.

[cosmicone]

14. Enjoy your stay

I predict it will be short

[raccoon]

6. Paul O'Neill, Sect. of the Treasury for GWB, said in his book THE PRICE OF LOYALTY

that the Bush admin was determined to invade Iraq from the moment Bush took office. They just needed an excuse.

[Roland99]

9. Beat me to it. That was the 1st book I read on the whole mess.

What an eye-opener.

[dysfunctional press]

10. poppy's boys were tasked with providing that excuse.

and they played their part magnificently.

[TN al]

8. Nobody should be surprised that W wanted to utilize the military in some fashion...

...during the campaign he complained about readiness and his dad sent us to a different place every christmas. Nice of him to give us that little christmas bonus. The last one was to Somalia after he said he wouldn't but was pouting after his election beat down. It's in the genes evidently.

[cal04]

13. Chilcot inquiry told UK did not consider Iraq regime change before 9/11, WMD tomorrow

Whitehall refused to engage in talks about toppling Saddam but shared US concerns that containment policy was failing
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/nov/24/iraq-inquiry-head-chilcot

(snip)
Sir Peter Ricketts, who was chairman of the joint intelligence committee in 2001, told the inquiry headed by the former civil servant Sir John Chilcot that it was already clear the three elements of the containment strategy – sanctions, an incentive to lift sanctions if Saddam allowed weapons inspectors to return, and "no fly" zones over north and south Iraq were "in trouble".

Those conducting a Whitehall review early in 2001 were aware some voices in Washington were already talking about regime change, with Ricketts citing as an example an article written by the then US national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, warning that "nothing will change" in Iraq until Saddam has gone.

(snip)
Ricketts, when asked about British policy if 9/11 had not happened, said: "I'm pretty sure that we would have stuck to the policy that we had. You can see that even after 9/11. We continued to push for a push for a goods review list resolution and to urge the Americans to push that on the Russians.

"I think if 9/11 had not happened, we would have remained convinced that a strengthened sanctions regime, tightened, narrowed, was the right way to go and we would have continued to push to get weapons inspectors back in."


http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/blog/2009/nov/24/chilcot-inquiry-iraq-war
3.54pm: Chilcot winds up. He thanks people for coming. And he says tomorrow the inquiry will be taking evidence about WMD. The evidence will be "quite detailed and quite technical". But it will prepare the ground for issues that will be discussed at later hearings.

[Luciferous]

16. Shocking

:eyes:

[cal04]

17. Iraq inquiry turns to weapons of mass destruction claim

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8377492.stm

The UK government's claim that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) is to be probed later by the official inquiry into the war.

On its second day of hearings in London, the Iraq inquiry will question former senior Foreign Office staff Tim Dowse and William Ehrman.

They will discuss the intelligence available to ministers on Iraq's WMDs prior to the US-led invasion.

The inquiry is not expected to report its full findings until 2011.