Ex-aide: Colin Powell was ‘manipulated’ by Cheney into justifying Iraq war

[kpete]

Source: Raw Story

Ex-aide: Colin Powell was ‘manipulated’ by Cheney into justifying Iraq war

By Sahil Kapur
Friday, February 18th, 2011 -- 9:40 am

WASHINGTON – Colin Powell's ex-chief of staff said Thursday the former Secretary of State was lied to and manipulated by Vice President Dick Cheney into justifying the US invasion of Iraq.

......................

Asked by Uygur if he believes Cheney "manipulated" Powell into giving the speech, Wilkerson replied, "absolutely."

"The only member of this administration with any credibility is Colin Powell. He's got poll ratings like Mother Theresa," Wilkerson recalled telling his staffers at the time. "They're using him."

................

But Wilkerson lamented that even if Curveball had not existed, "we still would have gone to war with Iraq because George W. Bush and Dick Cheney were absolutely intent to do so."

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/02/18/ex-aide-colin-powell-was-manipulated-by-cheney-into-justifying-iraq-war/

[Tippy]

1. K&R.....

[AnOhioan]

2. He may have been manipulated...but he let it happen

[swilton]

17. The guy was the former CJCS

He wasn't stupid - I totally agree that he let it happen. He absolutely knew what was going on.

[tblue37]

42. Before he gave that speech he threw the report and called it

bullsh**. He knew. He did it anyway.

[No Elephants]

44. Yep. He said he made Tenet sit right behind him at the UN. And, when the poop hit the fan, Powell

blamed Tenet, just as Powell planned all along. \

Sorry, Colon. You ARE responsible for fooling the American people and for trying to fool the UN, no matter how many fingers you try to point at other folk. They are responsible for what they did and so are you. And trying to evade your responsibility only makes you even more reprehensible.

Soldier up.

[rocktivity]

3. Candidate for this year's "You Call This NEWS?" award

And we're supposed to believe that Powell didn't KNOW it all a big lie? His demeanor at that fateful UN conference practically screamed that he didn't believe a word of it!

:headbang:
rocktivity

[aquart]

4. Trying to unsell a soul is damned hard work.

[AtheistCrusader]

33. My thoughts exactly.

[No Elephants]

49. VERY well put.

[HereSince1628]

5. Sorry too late for Colin there will be no run for high office

the stains on his hands are indelible.

His character has been shown to be consistent from covering up the Mai Lai massacre to fronting a lie that made war possible.

Colin wasn't holding a vial of biological weapons at the Security Council. He couldn't have REALLY believed that was the only prop in the room.

[Zoeisright]

6. Powell lied and he knew he was lying.

There are NO excuses.

[PassingFair]

10. I still feel a bit sorry for the guy.

He had been made complicit, which is how
they control people.

His "legacy" is shot.

[No Elephants]

45. I feel much sorrier for America and Iraq, esp. folks who died or got hurt.

"had been made complicit" is way more passive sounding than it should be.

Powell was chosen to present to the UN in a televised speech because his credibility ratings with the American people was higher than any other top level official in Bushco. He gave a presentation he knew was bs to lead people into war. He is NOT the victim in any degree.

[closeupready]

22. +1000. I really wish Powell would stop whining. Very unbecoming.

n/t

[EFerrari]

25. Whenever I hear Wilkerson say this, which he has often,

I feel uncomfortable because, wasn't he working for Powell during this whole thing?

[florida08]

7. Have always admired Lawrence Wilerson

a straight shooter.

[No Elephants]

46. Definitely NOT a straight shooter on this subject, which is all I really know about him.

Powell is a POS and Wilkerson keeps trying to polish that turd, so Wilkerson is almost as bad as Powell.

[Orsino]

8. The Devil gave it him, and he did eat. n/t

[Mnemosyne]

9. Complicit war criminal. K&R n/t

[PoliticAverse]

11. Are people really buying Colin Powell as victim? n/t

[frylock]

12. bullshit..

colin should've tendered his resignation. instead he went along. no sympathy.

[russspeakeasy]

16. frylock...my thoughts exactly...

[jberryhill]

20. +1

[driver8]

13. I don't think Cheney was holding a gun to his head...

Powell could have resigned -- he did not have to go before Congress and lie.

What a crock of shit. Oh, poor Colin Powell...now he's the victim.

[cbdo2007]

14. So powell needs to get on all the talk shows and SAY THIS HIMSELF!!!

Stop hiding behind stuff. if you were lied to, come out and say it. Let everyone know WHO lied to you and what lies they told. It is your duty as an American Citizen and history is judging you for what you do or say now.

[coffeenap]

18. Hear, hear!

The ONLY way to begin to redeem himself as a human being us to tell us the truth, finally.

[closeupready]

23. Yes, I agree this would help mitigate, but he will never ever ever do it.

Never.

[No Elephants]

48. No matter who says it, it's bs, but our lousy media won't cross-examine.

[RufusTFirefly]

15. Boo-hoo!

And did Cheney manipulate Powell into whitewashing the My-Lai Massacre as well?
Powell has a history. And it didn't just start with Iraq.

[No Elephants]

50. Yep. And DADT.

Yes, Clinton and Morris share the blame for DADT, but Colon {sic} penned it.

[leftynyc]

19. Let me know when Powell

comes out and names names. Until then, this is mental masturbation.

[closeupready]

21. What, does he think he's a child? Give me a fucking break.

They DID go to war, and you helped them. Case closed.

[Maineman]

24. Cheney should be in jail

Cheney having a non-human heart is nothing new.

[opihimoimoi]

26. Colon sucked for it....he deserves guilt.....his radar unit was malfunctioning

[Arugula Latte]

27. Poow widdle Cowin ...

Apparently he can't think or speak for himself, or call Cheney out. :eyes:

Accessory to massive mass murder he is, yes indeed.

[Phlem]

28. So that's the justification for war

Some schmuck says there's weapons over there and we say let's go to war?

I don't know about ya'll but I tend to verify my information first before I do almost anything.

This "Curveball" confessions means nothing. He lied, we went to war.

what a fuckin circus.

-p

[paparush]

30. Yeah. Can you imagine the opposite scenario?

Let's say Powell is a commander in the field in a hostile situation. He's pondering moving his troops through what may be hostile territory.

Some suit says, "General, take those troops right through the valley."

Powell: Are you sure?

Suit: Yes.

Powell: How can we confirm this?

Suit: Because I said so.

Powell: Ok.

Troops get shot to hell.

[paparush]

31. Yeah. Can you imagine the opposite scenario?

Let's say Powell is a commander in the field in a hostile situation. He's pondering moving his troops through what may be hostile territory.

Some suit says, "General, take those troops right through the valley."

Powell: Are you sure?

Suit: Yes.

Powell: How can we confirm this?

Suit: Because I said so.

Powell: Ok.

Troops get shot to hell.

A military commander would never rely on this type of information, but we went to frigging war just like that.

[aquamarina]

29. Oh puleeze. Really? Manipulated? Come on...

[jtrockville]

32. Did Cheney threaten to take Powell on a drunken canned hunt?

[bvar22]

34. LOL...Now Poor Colin is a victim!

For god's sake.

Just like every single "Democrat" who voted to give Bush the authority to invade Iraq,
...they ALL knew exactly what they were doing,
and chose Self-Interest over the Deaths of Innocents.

:cry: "Wah. We're VICTIMS because Bush/CHeney fooled us.":cry:

I would rather admit that I was a Blood Thirsty Sociopath who cared MORE about my political career than the deaths of thousands of innocents, than publicly proclaim that I was stupid enough for Bush to Fool Me.

[anamandujano]

37. Well put.

"I would rather admit that I was a Blood Thirsty Sociopath who cared MORE about my political career than the deaths of thousands of innocents, than publicly proclaim that I was stupid enough for Bush to Fool Me."

We all knew it was crap. Colin should have been reading here at DU. It would have kept him out of trouble.

[Solly Mack]

35. Weak

[Rosa Luxemburg]

36. That's true!

[SomeGuyInEagan]

38. BULLSHIT! Complicit war criminal.

I'll spit on him if given the chance.

[defendandprotect]

39. Colin Powell knew what he was doing was wrong ...

unfortunately, rather than resigning he chose to serve the BFEE -- !!

[dflprincess]

41. And now he's working overtime to cover his ass

When I saw Oliver Stone's "W" I thought the person who came off the worst was Powell. We already knew the other "characters" were all crooks and liars but Powell had cultivated a public persona of being an honorable man. The movie made it clear he knew he was lying and was no better that a collaborator.

[marasinghe]

40. who'd they poll for these ratings, the cardinals who elected ratzinger?

general tom colin should get a different PR man, rather than, as i believe, getting advice from his son michael, the guy who managed to run public broadcasting into a stone wall, as chairman of the FCC. and larry wilkerson should take his man-crush on an un-escorted tour around Iraq, before he gets to revisit his long-running, whitewash gig for powell.

Mother Theresa personally visited Sabra & Shatilla in Lebanon & evacuated mentally-disabled Palestinian kids, in the middle of a shooting war. while colin powell's claim to fame is whitewashing the My Lai massacre during the war in Vietnam. yeah, sure; powell & Mother Theresa poll in the same percentile, with the World at large.
http://www.nytimes.com/1982/08/15/world/hospital-is-visited-by-mother-teresa.html

wilkerson's powell shtick is getting old. as are powell's cries of injured innocence & deception at the hands of the bush-cheney rat pack. this is the problem with moderates like Cenk Uygur. they're so impressed with the uniform, they tend to give the softer-spoken fascist clowns, credibility & a forum.

[Lugnut]

43. I'm not buying it.

Colin Powell didn't get to be a general because he's stupid. I'm not a general and I even knew that Bush and Cheney were full of crap.

Saddam was in a heavily controlled and monitored "box" by our spooks. He was a threat to nobody other than Iraquis. Nice try Col Wilkerson but NO SALE.

[The Second Stone]

47. Powell knew it was bullshit just as we did

and he did it anyway with this plan to blame it on others. Powell is a big huge pig.

[No Elephants]

51. Awww. poor, helpless widdle General and Sec of State had no other choice.

Oh, wait.

Yes, he did.

[Imagevision]

52. How can Powell make such a statement and Cheney & Bush aren't charged with war crimes?