Bush Takes Responsibility for Iraq Claim

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=544&ncid=716&e=1&u=/ap/20030730/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush

WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) on Wednesday accepted personal responsibility for a controversial portion of last winter's State of the Union address dealing with claims that Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was seeking nuclear material in Africa.

"I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely," the president said at a White House news conference where he sought to quell a controversy that has dogged his administration for weeks.

Speaking at his first solo news conference since March, the president said the deaths of Saddam Hussein's two sons marked progress in assuring the Iraqi people that the old regime was gone forever. Still, he said he doesn't know how close American troops are to finding the deposed dictator.

"Closer than we were yesterday, I guess. All I know is we're on the hunt," he added.

more

Went from this: CIA chief takes blame for false Iraq claim

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/030712/80/e43hq.html

To this: Bush aide takes blame for Iraq uranium uproar

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/030723/3/11j00.html

To Bush finally fessing up. Wonder what brought that on?

Don

[booksenkatz]

1. Oh well

As long as he accepts responsibility, that makes everything ok, right? So now we can all forgive and forget, is that what we're supposed to do? No harm, no foul?
:puke:

[priller]

2. More empty rhetoric

Okay, George, taking responsibility for a mistake means:

-- owning up to the mistake
-- accepting the consequences, and
-- holding those accountable that produced the mistake

In other words, we want you to come clean on why this piece of info kept getting hyped, and to terminate the people that were doing the hyping.

[zekeson]

5. and while you are at it

would you mind putting out some kinda disclaimer that the leaders of Al-Queda and Saddam/adminsitration were NOT gay lovers and were not in on 9-11? Cuz, well, it kinda appears that your own administration seems to be, uh, well, maybe kinda on purpuse perpetuating that lie?

[tomp]

24. i thought he considered this issue closed and was moving on.

when and how and why did it open up again?

no comment. next scripted "question".

[tomp]

25. actually, he's not taking responsibility...

...he's just SAYING he takes responsibility. believe me, if there are going to be any actual consequences for "taking responsibility" bush will be nowhere to be found.

[CWebster]

3. but

will he take the consequences of the responsibility? That is the point of the "responsibility".

[nolabels]

4. Did he say anything about the thousands of other lies he and his....

Aids perpetrated on We the People of the United States of America

[nolabels]

31. I am setting out this site for the next question

http://www.whodies.com/index.html
http://www.whodies.com/dies_am_civilians.html

(snip)
US Soldiers

:: US Civilians

Iraqi Civilians

Iraqi Soldiers

..:: Costs of War

The costs of war are already soaring beyond the Bush administration's initial estimates. Rumsfeld claimed that the cost of the war would be "under $50 billion," but Bush has just requested $74.7 billion in emergency spending. Estimates of the direct cost of an invasion of Iraq and a postwar occupation range from $100 billion for a best case scenario to over $500 billion if complications ensue.
(snip)

[diplomats]

6. Sure, now he takes responsibility

after a month of acting like a weasel. Big friggin' deal.

[w13rd0]

7. Good for him...

...I guess Cheney told him to bite the bullet. Now they should both resign and get the hell out of my country. I want them EXILED to the moon or something...

[Cha]

13. Isn't crawford like the moon or something?

I want them out of our face and outta our Nation's House! And off the pages of our Country's newspapers.

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

8. It says something about this President

When the fact that he takes responsibility for the words that come out of his own mouth becomes front page news. Haven't we drastically lowered the bar for future Presidents?

"The President announced today that he rarely sleeps through cabinet meetings."

"The President announced today that he was able to read the newspaper this morning without the assistance of a tutor."

"The President announced today that he hasn't been convincted of any offenses since quitting cocaine in 1974."

Oops, that last one was real, wasn't it...

[gulliver]

9. No one asked him if he knew it was dubious.

He got to "take responsibility for everything he" says, but he no one thought to ask him if he knew the Niger/uranium claim was highly dubious. He didn't volunteer that neither he nor Cheney knew about CIA objections either.

So I still think he knew the claims were dubious and let his underlings take the rap.

[cjbuchanan]

10. Why did he fess up?

Because he thinks this story is dead. News outlets are not talking about it much anymore and I'm sure the administration feels that people are not paying attention.

So come 2004, he will be shielded from attack on this issue because he can say that he took responsibility. Making the argument that he did it to late will not hold much water with the public.

If this does not make some noise today, it probably will not be a big issue down the road. Let's hope it makes the nightly news.

[diplomats]

19. Actually, this brings the story back to the forefront

Personally, I think the damage has been done. And the WH doesn't allow Bush to hold a press conference unless they're desperate because he's so bad in this format.

[underpants]

11. He seems to have turned the page on a ne3w part of his life

(looking out the window to see if the sky is indeed falling)

A little too late for most people's opinions to change, sorry W.

[Brotherjohn]

12. So he accepts "personal responsibility" for using forged evidence...

... to make the case for war.

Um, then why isn't he resigning?

Okay, okay. Maybe that's asking too much. But why is NO ONE resigning? Why, although PLENTY of people have apparently taken "personal responsibility" for this, NO ONE has paid a price? NO ONE has received so much as a slap on the wrist?

In fact, the person MOST responsible (Condoleeza Rice) has taken the least responsibility and, according to W today in response to just this question is an "honest fabulous person" and the United States was lucky to have her in government?

[short bus president]

20. Yes, because * also now says

that "the ends justify the means," and that to argue with his use of lies to build support for war is tantamount to wishing Hussein was back in power. The things that come out of that abomination's mouth sometimes just shock me.

[LynneSin]

14. WOW, I'm a little stunned and speechless over that one

Seriously, I'm rendered speechless.

But this too shall pass

[Philosophy]

15. But did anyone follow up with asking Bush* to admit it was false?

Because before, when asked about it, he always insisted that everything he said the the SOTU was the absolute truth, even as others were falling over themselves trying to take the blame for the lies.

[underpants]

16. I notice he didn't actually apologize either

for either the SOTU or the lying he did about it later.

[symbolman]

17. Well then

I guess we can prosecute him then. We have an admission of guilt.

Let's roll.

[robbedvoter]

18. "he declined to take responsibility" edited out from earlier version

I copied the article when it was 6 minutes old and this is what the paragraph looked like:


"The president had been asked before about the 16 controversial words in
the State of the Union address, and had declined to take personal
responsibility. Instead, CIA (news - web sites) Director George Tenet
did so, followed by a senior White House aide, deputy national security
adviser Stephen Hadley."

I was surprised no one commented on it so I checked: it's gone!

[On the Road]

21. He's Been Reading the Polls Again

The American people don't like weaseling. Fortunately, I think the damage has been done already.

[Junkdrawer]

22. Rice decided the heat was getting too great, so she got the dummy...

to take responsibility. Begs the question: Whose the Boss?

[BiggJawn]

23. And his Resignation takes effect WHEN?????

Isn't that the honourable thing to do?

[Drifter]

26. So when does his ...

Resignation take effect?

The information he gave in his speak was bogus. It appears that everyone under the sun spent 6 months trying to get rid of this bogus claim. AWOL (and his cronies) insisted they have their war. They did not heed the warnings, and resurected this lie for one purpose and one purpose only. To mislead the American People to suport a war that had absolutely no merit.

I'm not sure if Chimpy has succedded in actually suspending the constitution, but I believe that lying to and misleading both Houses of Congress, and most houses in the United States, is an impeachable offense.

Do you know why Clinton did not go to war with Iraq ? Because there was no reason to.

I can not wait to see Chimpys "Nixonesque" departure from the White House.

Cheers
Drifter

[rocktivity]

27. I want a transcript!!!!

"I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely," the president said at a White House news conference where he sought to quell a controversy that has dogged his administration for weeks.


This may have been in response to a specific question about Uraniumgate, but it's a far cry from "I should not have said that Hussein was seeking nuclear material in Africa because it isn't true." And you're right, NNN0LHI, since everyone else and their aides have taken responsiblity already, it means that much less. What was the entire question, and what was his entire answer?

rocknation

[Junkdrawer]

28. Here's the question. As I said above, he's taking the bullet for Rice...

QUESTION: Mr. President, you often speak about the need for accountability in many areas.

I wonder then why is Dr. Condoleezza Rice not being held accountable for the statement that your own White House has acknowledged was a mistake in your State of the Union address regarding Iraq's attempts to purchase uranium? And also, do you take personal responsibility for that inaccuracy?

BUSH: I take personal responsibility for everything I say, of course. Absolutely. I also take responsibility for making decisions on war and peace. And I analyzed a thorough body of intelligence--good, solid, sound intelligence that led me to come to the conclusion that it was necessary to remove Saddam Hussein from power.

We gave the world a chance to do it. We had--remember, there was--again, I don't want to get repetitive here but it's important to remind everybody that there was 12 resolutions that came out of the United Nations because others recognized the threat of Saddam Hussein. Twelve times the United Nations Security Council passed resolutions in recognition of the threat that he posed. And the difference was is that some were not willing to act on those resolutions. We were, along with a lot of other countries, because he posed a threat. Dr. Condoleezza Rice is an honest, fabulous person, and America is lucky to have her service. Period.

[gristy]

29. rocknation - it was in response to the specific question

as to whether Bush takes responsibility for the false Niger claim in SOTU.

Since his reply to THAT SPECIFIC QUESTION was "I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely."

I think we are justified in concluding (as the journalists have already) that * is specifically accepting responsibility to the uranium claim.

Whether he "mispoke" or not will certainly be debated. But he either DOES or he DOESN'T take that responsiblity. And he said he DOES.

[diamond14]

33. Here's the transcript (link)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A2160-2003Jul30.html

"I take personal responsibility for everything I say, of course. Absolutely. I also take responsibility for making decisions on war and peace."

[diamond14]

35. the decision to go to war belongs to Congress, not to bush*...

at one point, bush* had tried to couch it as a "battle" in the bigger War on Terrorism...

[sham]

30. I think we may be giving him too much credit.

I watched it, he did say, "I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely." But I think one or both of the following things happened:
a. he didn't understand the ramifications of that statement (meaning that he didn't realize the press would interpret it as an admission of responsibility for the SOTU lies)
b. he didn't mean to say that at all, it just slipped out (after all, the Press Corps are a lot smarter than he is, and he was REALLY struggling to come up with coherent answers to any of the questions).

I'll be looking for some sort of tacit retraction or obfuscation to appear soon. Hopefully, the press won't tolerate that this time, and will hold him accountable for what he said.

[moondust]

32. Six months later, kicking and screaming, he finally

tries one more time to make the transition to adulthood.

[whoYaCallinAlib]

34. Too little, too late.

I hope America doesn't fall for it.

[gully]

36. Wasn't this war supposed to make us 'safer'?!

"Bush also said there was a "real threat" of a new al-Qaida attack on the United States, responding to a Department of Homeland Security warning about the possibility that the terror organization tied to the Sept. 11 terror attacks may try more suicide hijackings."

What are the repukes gonna think of his cowering behind his staff until Saddams sons were dead before admitting to this BS?

[umcwb]

37. Kick, n/t

[Pert_UK]

38. Headline news on the Guardian site...

"Bush takes responsibility for Niger claim

The US president, George Bush, today accepted personal responsibility for citing a controversial claim that the former Iraqi regime tried to obtain nuclear material in Africa.

"I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely," the president said at a White House news conference when asked about the now discredited accusation."

Full story:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1009196,00.html