(AP) Pentagon: Pre-war intelligence was legit

[Eugene]

Posted on Thu, Feb. 08, 2007

Pentagon: Pre-war intelligence was legit
ROBERT BURNS
Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Some of the Pentagon's prewar intelligence work, including a contention
that the CIA underplayed the likelihood of al-Qaida connections to Saddam Hussein, was
inappropriate but not illegal, a Defense Department investigation has concluded.

In a report to be presented to Congress on Friday, the department's inspector general
clears former Pentagon policy chief Douglas J. Feith of allegations by some Democrats
of illegal activities - specifically that he misled Congress about the basis of the
administration's assertions on the threat posed by Iraq.

Two people familiar with the findings discussed the main points and some details Thursday
on condition they not be identified.

The Senate Armed Services Committee has scheduled a hearing Friday to receive the
findings by Thomas F. Gimble, the Pentagon's acting inspector general. The committee's
chairman, Carl Levin, D-Mich., has been a leading critic of Feith's role in prewar
intelligence activities and has accused him of deceiving Congress.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/iraq/16654759.htm

[MethuenProgressive]

1. BS! and CYA, too

[Kikosexy2]

10. Congress...

should declared this report as a "flaming turd"...and actually set it on fire!...

[ShockediSay]

16. & I guess if Feith was acting as a subversive agent for a foreign govt,

hey, no problem, no violation of law, right???

[jpak]

2. Subpoena Feith and make him testify under oath about his "legit" intel

n/t

[ender]

3. oh good,

i'm glad that they investigated themselves and found nothing wrong.

let's let the congress investigate a little, shall we?

[Robbien]

4. They graded themselves and gave themselves an "A" for excellent

Now go away all you doubters.

[rodeodance]

5. Pentagon: Pre-war intelligence was legit (inappropriate but not illegal)

they are lawyered up that is for sure!!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070208/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/iraq_pentagon_intelligence_3

Pentagon: Pre-war intelligence was legit

By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer 15 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Some of the Pentagon's prewar intelligence work, including a contention that the CIA underplayed the likelihood of al-Qaida connections to Saddam Hussein, was inappropriate but not illegal, a Defense Department investigation has concluded.


In a report to be presented to Congress on Friday, the department's inspector general clears former Pentagon policy chief Douglas J. Feith of allegations by some Democrats of illegal activities — specifically that he misled Congress about the basis of the administration's assertions on the threat posed by Iraq.

Two people familiar with the findings discussed the main points and some details Thursday on condition they not be identified.

The
Senate Armed Services Committee has scheduled a hearing Friday to receive the findings by Thomas F. Gimble, the Pentagon's acting inspector general. The committee's chairman, Carl Levin (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., has been a leading critic of Feith's role in prewar intelligence activities and has accused him of deceiving Congress.

[kimmerspixelated]

6. The timing couldn't be more transparent!

Do they think we are all STOOPIT???

[Supersedeas]

9. the ole immoral but not illegal argument (unitary exec made it legal right?)

[Jack Rabbit]

7. !!

For Sale



The Golden Gate Bridge

A great investment!

Each southbound car pays you $5.

Buy now and (to show you what a nice guy I am) I'll throw in

Beachfront Property by the Sea of Tranquility

Contact: R. B. Cheney
Washington, DC

Photo: Winter Insurance (Austria)

[fasttense]

8. What a ridiculous report

Feith played with the facts, made the connection between al-Qaida and Saddam Hussein to be more than what it really was. If al-Qaida was so well connected to Saddam Hussein, then why was Iraq secular? Why did Iraq allow their women to be educated?

And where are those mysterious WMDs?

I like this:

"In a response last month to a draft of the IG's report, Feith's successor as undersecretary of defense for policy, Eric Edelman, wrote that the activity deemed by the IG to be "inappropriate" was actually "an exercise in alternative thinking" conducted at Wolfowitz's direction."

It wasn't manipulating facts and twisting the truth, it was alternative thinking. Too bad they didn't do some thinking about alternatives before they attacked Iraq.

[Disturbed]

11. The Foxes investigate Hen House Massacre.

The hens were not slaughtered. They committed suicide.

[ninkasi]

12. Oh, well, that settles it then

I'm sure all of the surviving Iraqis who have lost members of their family, their homes, and assorted arms and legs will be delighted to learn that the intelligence was inappropriate, but not illegal. They ones who left everything they ever loved, are are now living in exile, many in poverty, will change their minds about the U.S. They will also tell family members tortured at Abu Ghraib that their blood and pain was just the result of a misunderstanding.

The treachery of the Bush administration, the insatiable lust for war infecting the neocons, who have at the present a track record of being right about nothing, will doubtless be made less tragic because it wasn't actually illegal, although I personally think it was.

Using the dubious "reasoning" of this report, it should be perfectly ok for people arrested on minor drug offenses here in the U.S. to investigate themselves, and conclude that while inhaling marijuana might not have been appropriate, it wasn't illegal, because they also decided that the law was silly, and were therefore not bound to follow it.

No wonder stupid people become Republics. There is no need to think, to use reason, or logic, because any action that could be construed as illegal, or immoral, can easily be explained by various characters from Lewis Carroll, or crack users who are promised money to spout words that while making no sense, will be believed by the neocon faithful.

[Miss Chybil]

13. Killing a whole bunch of people based on lies is inappropriate?

What a crock of shit.

[Earth_First]

14. My father taught me that an honest person never needed to use words like "legit" n/t

[LynnTheDem]

15. Not "legit"; just not illegal to bullshit Americans to invasions.

The catapulting of the propaganda against the real actual facts has begun!