Kay: Bush Was Right to Attack Iraq

NewsMax ^ | 1/27/04 | Limbacher

[Tumbleweed_Connection]

Critics of the Bush administration have seized on Iraq weapons hunter David Kay's pronouncement over the weekend that Baghdad didn''t have any WMDs immediately before the U.S. attacked last March.

But Tuesday morning Kay gave President Bush an full-fledged endorsement on his decision to go to war.

In an interview with NBC's "Today Show," Kay told host Matt Lauer that the U.S. decision to attack was "absolutely prudent."

"In fact," said Kay, "I think at the end of the inspection process, we'll paint a picture of Iraq that was far more dangerous than even we thought it was before the war."

Kay described Iraq's government as "a system collapsing."

"It was a country that had the capability in weapons of mass destruction areas, and ... terrorists, like ants to honey, were going after it."

Meanwhile, Saddam Hussein was "was putting more money into his nuclear program, he was pushing ahead his long-range missile program as hard as he could," Kay said.

Although Baghdad wasn't successful, Kay said Iraq "had the intent to acquire these weapons," adding that Saddam had "invested huge amounts of money" to do so.

The chief weapons hunter also debunked the notion that the White House pressured U.S. intelligence to exaggerate the Iraq threat.

"The tendency to say, well, it must have been pressure from the White House, is absolutely wrong," he told "Today."

[marron]

I still don't understand why he resigned his post. Was it personal, was he pushed out, did he leave so he could speak more openly.... any ideas?

[JmyBryan]

I was literally in shock during the Matt Lauer interview. Maybe Matt's listened to the liberal media criticism?

[NormsRevenge]

Sounds like a setup job has been played out here and the liberal media bit hook line and sinker.. :-]

Is it me or does katie HighColonic look like her face is imploding? Man, her lips looked weird this morning... not that I pay attention to that kind of stuff, mind you. ;-\

[GOP_1900AD]

What we need to hear from Bush himself, is that the media have been dishonestly quoting Mr. Kay out of context, in order to turn his assessments from being justifications (and correct ones at that) for going into Iraq, into the Bush bashing sound bytes being used in Dean's rants. Man, I sure miss ole' Ronnie right about now. He knew how to deflate the liberal media in a heartbeat!

[Verginius Rufus]

Meanwhile Kenneth M. Pollack, who showed why war was necessary in his book The Threatening Storm: The Case for Invading Iraq, arguing that the status quo (containment) was breaking down and wouldn't work much longer, is now claiming in The Atlantic Monthly that Bush rushed to war prematurely and in the wrong way...certainly a strong candidate for Weasel of the Year.