WOODWARD COMING UP ON AIRAMERICA 10:02am 4/22/04

[JohnOneillsMemory]

[BlueEyedSon]

1. thx

[reformed_military]

2. Starting NOW

[JohnOneillsMemory]

3. Starting with a gag about PotteryGate ('You break it you own it")

Franken had previously called Pottery Barn. They don't make you pay for what you break.
Now talking about Bush's incuriousity in post-invasion Iraq.
Woodward confirms and says it's now a nightmare over there.

[eleny]

5. Was it Woodward

who said that Iraq now is like "Road Warrior"? I'm trying to remember who said that. I'm sure it was someone interviewed on TV recently but I can't recall.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

4. Woodward saying * should have said 'hold it, what about after the invasion

[JohnOneillsMemory]

6. Bob (Woodward) sez: "everyone failed miserably on after planning"

Finally some hard criticism.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

7. Bob sez "I asked W if it was a dangerous paternalism to claim a duty to

'free people.'

Led to that W line about Bob traveling in 'elitist circles.'

[JohnOneillsMemory]

8. Bob sez "it's interesting that they are trying to walk backwards from what

they had all said to me..."

Harder, Bob, harder.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

9. Bob agrees with Franken that Colin's UN presentation was "full of holes."

[JohnOneillsMemory]

10. Bob sez he believes they really believed the intel they pushed on us.

[TacticalPeek]

11. I wish Al or somebody would bring up with Woodward

(1) The January '01 NSC meeting with the agenda topic "Post-Saddam" Iraq, now publicly documented by the O'Neill/Suskind book.

(2) Shrub's March '02(?) outburst to the senators meeting at the WH about "F**k Saddam! We're taking him out."


Because Woodward's book and comments are carrying the maladmin's water about post-911 light bulbs going off about the "threat" of Iraq.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

12. Talking about Cheney's firey steamrolling push for war.

* told Bob that Cheney was really 'a cool customer.'

Bob being vague about whether Cheney talked to him, implying he did.

Bob reitterating that he triple-checked his unnamed sources.

Bob sez there was after-war planning, just on the wrong areas.
Franked rebutting outraged on all the ignored planning leading to too many soldier's deaths.

Franken: "Why is the president reading Teddy Roosevelt's book but not the Pentagon planning report?"

[JohnOneillsMemory]

13. Bob and Al haggling over the 2500 page report on after planning disregarde

disregarded.

Bob sez that he doesn't see how any planning would've helped when you go into a country and destroy every form of order. As in, no matter how many troops or the best laid plans.

THIS IS BOB'S STRONGEST AND BEST CRITICISM TO DATE.
Namely, there is now way that this invasion plan could've succeeded given the CULTURAL HUMAN ISSUES. Not money, weapons, materials. But just the humanity and that is the thing the Cheney administration is most lacking in!!!

[JohnOneillsMemory]

14. Discussing the admin's honesty re: Pentagon transcript scrubbed of Rummy

comments to Bandihar confirming the war go-ahead.

[Misunderestimator]

15. I just figured out...

...while listening to Woodward that you're in another time zone. :) I was worried I missed something when I saw this thread earlier.

Love the way he speaks... so pedantic... so convincing.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

16. Discussing *'s quote about a higher power, not his dad, helping him.

Franken: I see a guy who is saying he's doing God's work but isn't reading.

Franken: Telling of his being in Uzbekistan and talking to psy-ops guys about how horrible the human rights situation is there and first they deny and then agree with him.

[TacticalPeek]

17. Actually.

I think he meant that first they said it was a great government for cooperating in the terrist hunt, and then that it was a horrible government for human rights.

Woodward allowed as how both were probably true.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

19. Correct. Thanks. Of course, my simplification illustrates the oxymoron

implied and the propaganda used to cover up REAL TERRORISM by the state by calling any dissent terrorism.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

18. 10:45am PST. Done. Franken was great, showed outrage.

(Sorry, should've clarified the time zone thang.)

Woodward was flat in his performance but did confirm the above criticisms.

In discussing how honest this admin was, he mentioned that Colin is now minimizing his talks with Bob to 'only a couple' while it was actually 6 lengthy phone calls. And Colin said that they were all instructed to speak to Bob.

Looks like this book was meant to be a War Hero's Tribute for re-election purposes and it's becoming and indictment against them.

But Bob isn't pushing very hard either way. He's letting it be an 'eye-of-the-beholder' thing.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

20. Bob shouldn't push it. The fact that he wrote a book favourable to Bush

means that his criticisms will be more effective.
I hope.

[samsingh]

21. which is what journalists should do from time to time.

i'll take that approach over the fox and cnn whore approach.