James Baker III on "Fresh Air" today, stops just short of admitting

[smoogatz]

that Bushco invaded Iraq for the oil. Listen here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6202342 The key moment is about 4/5 of the way through the interview.

[tuvor]

1. As long as no one's accounting for Iraqi oil revenue, is there any doubt?

Few people are asking what's happening to oil revenues derived from Iraq, and fewer are interested in telling us.

[Jcrowley]

2. A testimony to how corrupt this country is

How is Baker, a guy with a long list of criminal activity, allowed to walk free? Forget about Dubya this is a real power broker who's got more blood on his hands than Dubya could dream of.

[Buzz Clik]

3. He said that Desert Storm was about oil...

and GWH Bush said as much, too. Saddam invaded Kuwait for their oil, and we kicked them out for the same reason.

As far as this mess is concerned, he really didn't say that it was over oil. Baker (as an advisor to Ford, Reagan, or Bush41)would have attacked Saddam if Iraq's oil became insecure, securing the energy would a justifiable reason for invasion. Considering what a phenomenal disaster Iraq is right now, my feeling is that Baker is being brought in to once again secure Iraq's oil. If Shrub invaded Iraq for their oil, it totally backfired. Come to think of it, no matter what reason you might list for the invasion, it failed.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

4. Googling 'James Baker' 'Energy Security' gets some interesting hits

On the first page (at http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22James+Baker%22+%22Energy+Security%22&btnG=Google+Search ) is a piece with references to an April 2001 report financed by the Baker Institute for Public Policy that may have been very influential in a secret "blood for oil" WH agenda.

Also, I was surprised to see in "State of Denial" an account of a November 2001 meeting, dominated by the American Enterprise Institute, which even more directly advocated invading Iraq.

It amazes me that people like Jim Baker and Fareed Zakaria evidently may wage a high-level politics that results in tens of thousands of deaths of human beings, with no public accountability. Don't forget that the "Voter ID" law which has been enacted by the House to disfranchise hundreds of thousands also is Baker's idea, foisted on Congress by the Carter-Baker Commission

.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/entity.jsp?entity=james_baker :

"April 12, 2001: Report on Energy Security Argues US Needs to Review Policy on Iraq

A report commissioned by former US Secretary of State James Baker and the Council on Foreign Relations, titled 'Strategic Energy Policy Challenges For The 21st Century,' is completed and submitted to Vice President Dick Cheney. The report was drafted by the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy. Edward L. Morse, an energy industry analyst, chaired the project, and Amy Myers Jaffe was the project¡s director. The paper urges the US to formulate a comprehensive, integrated strategic energy policy to address the current energy crisis, which it attributes to infrastructural restraints, rapid global economic expansion, and the presence of obstacles to foreign investment in the oil-rich Middle East. ...

One of the report's recommendations is to '(r)eview policies toward Iraq' with the ultimate goal of stemming the tide of anti-Americanism in the Middle-East and 'eas(ing) Iraqi oil-field investment restrictions.' Iraq, under the leadership of Saddam Hussein, remains a 'destabilizing influence ... to the flow of oil to international markets from the Middle East.' It also notes, 'Saddam Hussein has also demonstrated a willingness to threaten to use the oil weapon and to use his own export program to manipulate oil markets.' Therefore, the report says, the United States should conduct an immediate policy review toward Iraq, including military, energy, economic, and political/diplomatic assessments' and work with key allies to develop a new integrated strategy toward Iraq. Key elements of the new policy should include narrowing the focus of sanctions and using diplomatic means to enforce existing UN resolutions. (Sunday Herald (Glasgow), 10/5/2002; Sydney Morning Herald, 12/26/2002"

[Canuckistanian]

5. I didn't know Senator Palpatine gave interviews

And who's he training to be the next Sith Lord?

[glitch]

6. Good question. I bet they keep that info quiet until his unvealing.

That's just good marketing.