Nader: Iraq an Unconstitutional, Illegal War-Justified by Five Falsehoods

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from a press list:

Nader: Iraq an Unconstitutional, Illegal War

Justified by Five Falsehoods

Calls on Condoleezza Rice to Correct the Record

Washington, DC: Independent Presidential candidate Ralph Nader today called on National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice to explain “Five falsehoods that led to war.”  Nader noted: “Given the increasing credibility crisis of the deceptive president and vice president, it is truly revealing that President Bush insists that his forthcoming testimony before the Commission be behind closed doors, not under oath, without a transcript and with Coach Cheney at his elbow.”

Five Falsehoods That Led to the Iraq Quagmire

1.                  Weapons of Mass Destruction.  The weapons have still not been found. Nader emphasized, “Until the 1991 Gulf War, Saddam Hussein was our government’s anti-communist ally in the Middle East.  We also used him to keep Iran at bay. In so doing, in the 1980s corporations were licensed by the Department of Commerce to export the materials for chemical and biological weapons that President Bush later accused him of having.” Those weapons were destroyed after the Gulf War. See: David Kay testimony before Senate Armed Services Committee, January 28, 2004.

2.                  Iraq Ties to Al Qaeda. The White House made this claim even though the  CIA and FBI repeatedly told them that there was no tie between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda.  They were mortal enemies – one secular the other fundamentalist.

3.                  Saddam Hussein was a Threat to the United States. In fact, Saddam was a tottering dictator, with an antiquated command and control-less army. He did not even control the air space over most of Iraq.

4.                  Saddam Hussein was a Threat to his Neighbors: In fact, Iraq was surrounded by countries with far superior military forces. Turkey, Iran and Israel were all capable of obliterating any aggressive move by the Iraqi dictator.

5.                  The Liberation of the Iraqi People. There are brutal dictators throughout the world, many supported over the years by Washington, who people need “liberation” from their leaders. This is not a persuasive argument. It’s about oil. In fact, the occupation of Iraq by the United States is a magnet for increasing violence, anarchy and insurrection.

Nader urged Condoleezza Rice to explain how these five falsehoods became part of the Bush Administration’s drum beat for war when she testifies before the 9-11 Commission on Thursday.  “The National Security Advisor should take this opportunity to tell the American people the truth on these issues once and for all,” Nader said.

[livetohike]

1. Good points - can't disagree with him

on these.