Since there was a world-wide intel failure, was there a world-wide

[cantstandbush]

conspiracy to unseat Saddam? Are they all lying? We know that the Brits lied as well as the Bushcos. Was the entire west in on it also? We know the Israel would probably even generate some false intel to get the US involved. The key question is whether or not we are dealing with BAD intel or FALSE intel?

[Laura PourMeADrink]

1. I have been wondering about this myself and meaning to research

it. B** et al keep floating this - That EVERYONE thought he did have WMD. I often wonder is this has been proven and if it is documented. Today, Santorum on Imus said that the British STILL think that Saddam was after yellowcake. Is that true?

I wish every country would issue a statement of (1) did they have independent evidence/intelligence that Saddam did have WMD and was seeking yellowcake, and if yes, who was the source and (2) do they still think it now.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

p.s. Think I'll write Frank Rich as an idea for a story.

[halobeam]

8. There were other countries that stated they felt too that

Saddam had WMD's. I'd like to know the answers to the questions you laid out in your post.

"Independent evidence Saddam had WMD's"... other than "our intelligence" and if yes, who were the sources for that evidence. and yes, do they still think it now.

I'd also like to know if it would be "beneficial" in any sort to them, if Saddam were taken out of Iraq. If so, how? Also, who would benefit? etc.

These things I've never been clear on, I may have missed focus articles on these issues, but nonetheless.. I'd like to know what these answers are too.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

9. Thanks Halobeam - Just sent this to Frank Rich....

Frank,

As part of a very active online discussion group (democraticunderground.com), we have a recommended topic for you.

The Bush Administration continues to say that all the countries in the world thought Saddam had WMD and that he was trying to reconstitute his nuclear weapons program. They continue, even now, to assert that the British STILL believe that Saddam was seeking a yellowcake uranium purchase.

Is this true? It would be interesting to know, of the major countries in the world, which actually had independent intelligence that these assertions were true (1) at the time of the invasion and (2) today. Maybe this is not public record information? If not, it is easy to assert this blanket statement about "everyone in the world." Also, if the countries did believe it, were they basing that belief on what WE were putting out there?

It would also be of interest to tie in how each country would have benefited, in any way, by the removal of Saddam's regime.

Thanks. We all love what you do! You are a true investigative journalist and we applaud you.

[halobeam]

12. Hope he does it. I think there are many people who'd like

to hear about "all the other countries thinking he had WMD's too"...

[TallahasseeGrannie]

2. Could someone explain

to me about how the forgeries from Niger fit into all this? I am beginning to get lost.

I guess that is what you mean about bad vs. false intel, right?

[FloridaPat]

6. The forgeries were sort of the icing on the cake. Here was proof

that Sadam was going after uranium that could only be used for weapons. Right before the invasion, the letters were turned over to the International Atomic Energy people. It took them an hour to see they were forgeries. The main reason was - the Nigerian official who signed the documents was not in office at that time. Now how in the world does the CIA and FBI with billions of dollars of money miss that?

[Laura PourMeADrink]

7. Well, the theory is that Cheney and others wanted to go to war

no matter what. Cheney could not find any evidence that was credible or substantiated that showed Saddam was seeking to reconstitute his nuclear program. Then mysteriously, documents show up that showed a uranium purchase agreement between the government of Niger and an Iraqi representative.

The problem was, the documents were forged. Cheney and the CIA had them in late 2002. El Baradeii wanted to see them because he was very sceptical. He repeatedly asked for the US to send him the docs. They didn't until February - AFTER the infamous State of the Union Address, when Bush scared the bejesus out of the world. It took El Baradeii's people 30 minutes to figure out that the documents were forged (wrong Niger emblem on documents, wrong names, etc.)

All this leads one to believe that our government might have been behind the forgeries to invent evidence for Cheney...

[Uben]

3. What?

If there was a world-wide intel failure, how come very few were willing to go to war? The only intel failure was the failure of the Bushco to have any intelligence! Everyone else knew!

Let's face it. We had more support after 9/11 than ever! Yet, only a few countries (and they were bought) were willing to accompany us into war. The failure was in the Bush administration only! Because they were lying!

[FloridaPat]

4. There was no world-wide intel failure. 90% of the gov'ts and people

on the planet knew * was lying. 80% of the Americans thought he was telling the truth. It was fixed intel. * wanted the CIA to come up with stuff. They couldn't. So he started an intelligence group under the Dept of Defense to come up with stuff. Even they coulnd't. Just like the invasion of Afghanistan - they had a military plan. They just had to convince congress and the rest of us to back him. Whatever it took. Luckily for them 9-11 happened, so invading Afghanistan was really easy. Iraq was a little harder. Had the MSM been doing it's job, maybe more congress people and citizens would have not supported the invasion. And actually, * was to report back to congress before the invasion what proof he had. I think congress was figuring that would happen weeks before. He sent a 1/2 page letter hours before the Iraq invasion. Why the Democrats couldn't see what was going on is beyond me. There were signs for 2 years of * intention to invade Iraq.

[gemlake]

5. It was the world vs. bush

There was no world-wide intel failure. Countries around the world opposed the war.

[readmylips]

10. Coalition of the Willing very small and were bribed...

The countries not willing to support bush's war knew the truth of no WMDs in Iraq. But cowboy bush needed to flesh his toy brain.

[cantstandbush]

11. Please recommend this up so we can get some more input on this.

Thanks! i am shameless, i know.

[understandinglife]

13. No "world wide" intel failure at all. All the facts were publicly ...

... available, before March 19, 2003.

What was also obvious is that Cheney and his neoconsters distorted the facts, multiple times.

The patriotic members of America's intelligence community had the facts and defended the facts and we are witnessing the consequences, including the fact that Libby committed numerous felonies to keep the reality of how he, Cheney and the neoconsters subverted, and then intentionally destroyed, our intelligence assets.


Peace.

[muriel_volestrangler]

14. Russia didn't think there were WMD

Putin demands proof over Iraqi weapons

Vladimir Putin yesterday rejected Anglo-American claims that Saddam Hussein already possesses weapons of mass destruction and told Tony Blair that the best way to resolve the conflict of evidence is not war, but the return of UN inspectors to Iraq.

With a tense Mr Blair alongside him at his dacha near Moscow, the Russian president took the unusual step of citing this week's sceptical CIA report on the Iraqi military threat to assert: "Fears are one thing, hard facts are another".
...
"Russia does not have in its possession any trustworthy data that supports the existence of nuclear weapons or any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and we have not received any such information from our partners as yet. This fact has also been supported by the information sent by the CIA to the US Congress."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/ukresponse/story/0,11017,810612,00.html

[cantstandbush]

15. What about Blix, Ritter, El debari...what did they say prior to invasion?

I thought that Clinton said most of the WMDs were destroyed during Desert Storm?