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Incredible
Shrinking WMDs
June
26, 2003
By Bridget Gibson
On September 20, 2001, George Walker Bush received a letter
from the members of The Project for the New American Century
(PNAC), which stated, in part:
Iraq: We agree with Secretary of State Powell's
recent statement that Saddam Hussein "is one of the leading
terrorists on the face of the Earth…." It may be that the
Iraqi government provided assistance in some form to the
recent attack on the United States. But even if evidence
does not link Iraq directly to the attack, any strategy
aiming at the eradication of terrorism and its sponsors
must include a determined effort to remove Saddam Hussein
from power in Iraq. Failure to undertake such an effort
will constitute an early and perhaps decisive surrender
in the war on international terrorism. The United States
must therefore provide full military and financial support
to the Iraqi opposition. American military force should
be used to provide a "safe zone" in Iraq from which the
opposition can operate. And American forces must be prepared
to back up our commitment to the Iraqi opposition by all
necessary means.
From that moment on, we were told by George Walker Bush
that there was an "axis of evil" comprised of Iran, Iraq and
North Korea. He told us that Iraq had biological weapons sufficient
to produce over 25,000 liters of anthrax, had materials sufficient
to produce more than 38,000 liters of botulinum toxin, had
the materials to produce as much as 500 tons of sarin, mustard
and VX nerve agent, had upwards of 30,000 munitions capable
of delivering chemical agents, had several mobile biological
weapons labs. He told us that "the British government has
learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities
of uranium from Africa."
On February 5, 2003, Colin Powell testified before the United
Nations Security Council that "Hussein and his regime
have made no effort - no effort - to disarm as required by
the international community." He stated, "My colleagues,
every statement I make today is backed up by sources, solid
sources. These are not assertions. What we're giving you are
facts and conclusions based on solid intelligence. I will
cite some examples, and these are from human sources."
On March 18, 2003, George Walker Bush said "We are now acting
because the risks of inaction would be far greater. In one
year, or five years, the power of Iraq to inflict harm on
all free nations would be multiplied many times over. With
these capabilities, Saddam Hussein and his terrorist allies
could choose the moment of deadly conflict when they are strongest.
We choose to meet that threat now, where it arises, before
it can appear suddenly in our skies and cities."
The facts do not support George Bush's or Colin Powell's
statements. These two men testified before all of the people
of our great country and the representatives of other nations
falsely. The document that purported to show the connection
of Iraq seeking enriched uranium had been declared a forgery
long before George Walker Bush uttered those words in his
State of the Union Address in January 2003. The "intelligence"
documents that Colin Powell waved in the air were plagiarized
from the thesis of a college student that was more than twelve
years old.
The proof of their statements has been shown to be false
in the weeks following George Walker Bush's "Mission Accomplished"
speech from the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1,
2003.
On June 21, 2003, George Walker Bush said "The intelligence
services of many nations concluded that he had illegal weapons
and the regime refused to provide evidence they had been destroyed.
We are determined to discover the true extent of Saddam Hussein's
weapons programs, no matter how long it takes,"
That's a far cry from his earlier testimonies of quantities
of WMDs. Now we are looking for papers and documents of past
"programs," not actual weapons.
The "mobile biological weapons labs" have been found to
be units sold to Iraq by Great Britain for the purpose of
inflating artillery balloons with hydrogen.
We have found fertilizer factories, swimming pools and vacuum
cleaners.
We have sacrificed the lives of almost two hundred of our
best and bravest. We have caused the deaths of thousands of
Iraqi civilians.
We have found no weapons of mass destruction.
We, my friends, have been played for fools. We have been
lied to.
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