Bush's war plans are a cover-up, Byrd says

Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., said President Bush’s plans to invade Iraq are a conscious effort to distract public attention from growing problems at home.

“This administration, all of a sudden, wants to go to war with Iraq,” Byrd said. “The [political] polls are dropping, the domestic situation has problems.... So all of a sudden we have this war talk, war fervor, the bugles of war, drums of war, clouds of war.

“Don’t tell me that things suddenly went wrong. Back in August, the president had no plans.... Then all of a sudden this country is going to war,” Byrd told the Senate on Friday.

“Are politicians talking about the domestic situation, the stock market, weaknesses in the economy, jobs that are being lost, housing problems? No.”

Byrd warned of another Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Passed on Aug. 7, 1964, that resolution handed President Lyndon Johnson broad powers to escalate the war in Vietnam, a conflict that cost 58,202 American lives and millions of Asian lives.

“Congress will be putting itself on the sidelines,” Byrd told the Senate. “Nothing would please this president more than having such a blank check handed to him.”

Byrd said his belief in the Constitution will prevent him from voting for Bush’s war resolution. “But I am finding that the Constitution is irrelevant to people of this administration.”

Sens. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., both praised Byrd after he spoke.

“It is the height of patriotism to ask such hard questions,” Clinton said. “No one exemplifies that more than the senior senator from West Virginia.”

Byrd said, “Before the nation is committed to war, before we send our sons and daughters to battle in faraway lands, there are critical questions that must be asked. To date, the answers from the administration have been less than satisfying.”

Byrd repeatedly said Bush has failed to give members of Congress any evidence about any immediate danger from Iraq. Byrd also criticized his speech to the United Nations.

“Instead of offering compelling evidence that the Iraqi regime had taken steps to advance its weapons program, the president offered the U.N. more of a warning than an appeal for support.

“Instead of using the forum of the U.N. General Assembly to offer evidence and proof of his claims, the president basically told the nations of the world that you are either with me, or against me,” Byrd said.

“We must not be hell-bent on an invasion until we have exhausted every other possible option to assess and eliminate Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction program. We must not act alone. We must have the support of the world.”

Byrd said Congress needs solid evidence and answers to several specific questions, including:

Your guy did nothing for 8 years even when America was hit over and over again.

Now it's time to act. The time for talk is over.

an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

Well, Bobby, let's take a look at a few of these gems and see what we come up with, shall we?

Byrd warned of another Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Passed on Aug. 7, 1964, that resolution handed President Lyndon Johnson broad powers to escalate the war in Vietnam, a conflict that cost 58,202 American lives and millions of Asian lives.

Ah, yes, the old "it's gonna be another Viet Nam" trick. BTW, Bobby, what the hell would you know about how a military operation works? Did you ever bother to suit up and do a little something for yourself besides suck money out of the treasury?

“But I am finding that the Constitution is irrelevant to people of this administration.”

OH, now that is friggin' funny! I'm sorry, Bobby, who was it that committed crimes that rose to the level of impeachment but you somehow managed to vote against conviction? This administration considers the Constitution irrelevant? Ha! I think you only find it relevant when nobody is listening to you and the rest of the communists.

Sens. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., both praised Byrd after he spoke.

Fine, upstanding friends of freedom you have backing you up, Bobby. You know, my gramma always said you are known by the company you keep....

“Instead of using the forum of the U.N. General Assembly to offer evidence and proof of his claims, the president basically told the nations of the world that you are either with me, or against me,”

Funny, Bobby, he told you and the rest of the legislature the same thing a year ago. Were you not listening then, either? And another thing, Bobby, what is it with you and your party that is continually begging to have intelligence information, sensitive and damaging information, put out to the public for general consumption? Would you rather have a mass panic on your hands? Or would a major urban center have to be changed into a pile of radioactive ash for you to have your "proof"? Maybe a few thousand innocents dead and dying on the news every night would satisfy you and the rest of the bed wetters? Then again, you would only complain that we can't do anything because we might be attacked again. Oh, the humanity, Bobby!

“We must not be hell-bent on an invasion until we have exhausted every other possible option to assess and eliminate Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction program. We must not act alone. We must have the support of the world.”

*Sigh*, spoken like a true communist that would sell his own people to the highest bidder so he didn't have to actually do anything that required a spine. Oh, wait a minute, what happened during impeachment?

Go back to doing something you know how to do, Bobby, like lie and cheat and take away more of our rights.

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