Those Memos from #10
Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime’s record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action.
The Sunday Times of London: The secret Downing Street memo
Terrorism and WMD. Iraq had no Weapons of Mass Destruction and hadn’t since 1993 or so. Not having any WMD, they couldn’t very well give them to terrorists, now could they?
Michael Smith of the Sunday Times of London addressed the semantic games some are playing with the term “fixed” and the supposedly different meanings in American and British English:
Michael Smith: There are number of people asking about fixed and its meaning. This is a real joke. I do not know anyone in the UK who took it to mean anything other than fixed as in fixed a race, fixed an election, fixed the intelligence. If you fix something, you make it the way you want it. The intelligence was fixed and as for the reports that said this was one British official. Pleeeaaassee! This was the head of MI6. How much authority do you want the man to have? He has just been to Washington, he has just talked to George Tenet. He said the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. That translates in clearer terms as the intelligence was being cooked to match what the administration wanted it to say to justify invading Iraq. Fixed means the same here as it does there.
There is additional anecdotal evidence that the chickenhawk Bush administration was dead set on invading Iraq:
I would go back to an earlier conversation, and this happened on the 20th of September, 2001, so nine days after 9/11. This involved Tony Blair, who was in Washington having dinner with the president. How do we know about this? We know this because Christopher Meyer, the UK ambassador, was there at the dinner, and he’s written his memoirs.
And what does he say? The conversation went like this. President Bush: Tony we’re going to Afghanistan in a week or two, but that won’t take long and we get out of there and go right into Iraq, are you with me Tony? Are you with me? And Christopher Meyer says my goodness, it was really, that Tony was sort of nonplused but he said yes sir, I’m with you, Mr. President.
The NewsHour: Ray McGovern, former CIA intelligence analyst
The Guardian’s “Bush and Blair made secret pact for Iraq war” has more details.
If impeachment proceedings can be started over lies about sex between consenting adults, lying about the justification for war definitely qualifies.
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