PBS exposes Bush's lies about Iraq

This video isn't new, so I'm surprised that it hasn't been discussed on this site before. This is an important documentary, and I would like the thread title to reflect the video (for search function purposes), so I'm just going to put my own comment in the next post.



For those with low bandwidth: The video is about how the official intelligence report on Iraq stated that they most likely didn't have WMD, but the report released to the public said that they most likely do.

The video may not have had any new information for some people here, but I thought I would bring this up now since you hear a lot of talk about people calling for the Bush administration to be investigated over torture.

I definitely agree that the torture complaints need to be looked into, but it blows my mind that that is the thing that comes to people's minds when they talk about the past administration facing possible investigations, when Bush and his buddies are guilty of a far worse crime.

So far, there have been 4,272 confirmed coalition deaths. We know that there are at least 91,466 civilian deaths so far, and I'm sure most of you have heard the estimates that there could be around 1,000,000.

When all these deaths are the result of a lie, why is this not the bigger argument for Bush to face justice?

Speaking about lies about Iraq....today is the 2nd anniversary of Harry Reid's proclamation that the Iraq War is lost.

It wasn't Bush's "lies" about Iraq that led to this war...it was Saddam Hussein's lies that led to it. Bush's action led to his defeat and eventual execution by the liberated Iraqi people! Thanks to Bush's action one of the most vile dictators in the 20th century was taken down!

reply to post by Curious_Agnostic

When all these deaths are the result of a lie, why is this not the bigger argument for Bush to face justice?

Because he didnt get a blow job out of the deal!

Even though he lied about stuff just the same! Hmmmm...
Thanks to you and ATS! Star and flag!
Lets bring em ALL to justice!
(there would probably be no one left at all in wash!)

Maybe Bush didn't lie....maybe he was listening to these prominent Democrats????


"One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line."
--President Bill Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program."
--President Bill Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face."
--Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998

"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983."
--Sandy Bergler, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs."
Letter to President Clinton, signed by:
-- Democratic Senators Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others, Oct. 9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process."
-Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies."
-- Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999

"There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies."
Letter to President Bush, Signed by:
-- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), and others, Dec 5, 2001

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and th! e means of delivering them."
-- Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country."
-- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power."
-- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction."
-- Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..."
-- Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force -- if necessary -- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security."
-- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ... We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction."
-- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002

"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do"
-- Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members ... It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons."
-- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction."
-- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation ... And now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction ... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real..."
-- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003

reply to post by RRconservative

Really is that how you're gonna spin it? Wow!
No wonder the world hates us. Well 80+% anyway!
Good job!
Shouldnt you be listening to rush about now?(and not the group)
Sorry had to take a poke at ya! Peace. Whats that I know.
Sure alot more dictators to take care of, go sign up and get busy!

reply to post by RRconservative

Star for you! Good info and good point!
Except you forgot to mention iraq has big oil and bigger contracts!
Shouldnt matter what side of the tracks err which side of the fence you're on.
We just get off on it, I think! It's kinda like....
oh fiddlestickers, just watch this, he explains it way better than I could.
Thanks for your POV! Definately takes all types!
www.youtube.com...
Not for minors!


[edit on 19-4-2009 by dodadoom]

I used to watch PBS quite often, especially given their relevance of programming towards my area (Washington, D.C.). However, they have as of recent become blatantly Partisan and Leftist in nature, and therefore they have lost their credibility.

The WMD Intel which you speak of is still Classified, so unless you have the ability to read it yourself, do not criticize it. It is very easy and simple in nature to rip apart, trash, and attack reports, documents, and information which the general public has NO access to whatsoever. You are essentially having a field day with attacking an entity who currently has their hands tied behind their backs, as they cannot formulate any retorts in support of the documents which President Bush presented pre-OIF. You need to realize that.

reply to post by TheAgentNineteen


I may not be able to get my hands on classified material, but don't you think this at least deserves another look?

The National Security Archive released a report Friday Aug. 22, 2008 that sheds even more light on the premeditated lying and deception that took the United States to war in Iraq.
........................
The unavoidable conclusion is that the Bush-Cheney White paper "justifying" the invasion was developed a full three months in advance of the intelligence data and analysis that should have served as the basis for that justification.

www.scoop.co.nz...

President Bush's credibility has come under attack because he cited, in his State of the Union address, a British report that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger. That allegation, which Powell left out of his own speech, has been challenged by U.S. intelligence officials.
...............
Powell said "classified" documents found at a nuclear scientist's Baghdad home were "dramatic confirmation" of intelligence saying prohibited items were concealed this way.

U.N. nuclear inspectors later said the documents were old and "irrelevant" - some administrative material, some from a failed and well-known uranium-enrichment program of the 1980s.
.................
Powell showed video of an Iraqi F-1 Mirage jet spraying "simulated anthrax." He said four such spray tanks were unaccounted for, and Iraq was building small unmanned aircraft "well suited for dispensing chemical and biological weapons."

According to U.N. inspectors' reports, the video predated the 1991 Persian Gulf war, when the Mirage was said to have been destroyed, and three of the four spray tanks were destroyed in the 1990s.
...............
Powell said 122 mm chemical warheads found by U.N. inspectors in January might be the "tip of an iceberg."

The warheads were empty, a fact Powell didn't note. Blix said on June 16 the dozen stray rocket warheads, never uncrated, were apparently "debris from the past," the 1980s.
...............
Chief U.N. nuclear inspector Mohamed ElBaradei told the council two weeks before the U.S. invasion, "We have to date found no evidence or plausible indication of the revival of a nuclear weapons program in Iraq."

www.commondreams.org...

To RRconservative:
I realize that the folks in the Bush administration weren't the only ones making claims about Iraq, but it was the administration that had the most access to classified material, and they're the ones that led us into the war.

I also don't mind that those people are Democrats, because I think both parties suck.