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Bush's State of the Union speech redeemed
SUN-TIMES ^ | July 11, 2004 | MARK STEYN

Posted on 07/10/2004 6:29:51 AM PDT by Jewels1091

Do you remember a year ago when the Democratic National Committee was putting out press releases headlined ''President Bush Deceives The American People"?

Yawn. What's new? But last summer the Bush Lie Of The Week was all to do with Saddam trying to buy uranium from Niger. CNN and Co. replayed endlessly the critical 16 words from the president's 2003 State of the Union Address:

''The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa."

Sixteen words that could break a presidency! Bush ''misled every one of us,'' huffed Sen. John Kerry. ''It's beginning to sound like Watergate,'' said Howard Dean. Joseph C. Wilson IV, the man the CIA sent to Africa to investigate, wrote a piece for the New York Times titled ''What I didn't find in Africa.''

Can you guess what he didn't find, dear reader? That's right, he didn't find a big package of uranium bearing the address label ''S. Hussein, Suite 27, the Saddam Hussein Centre for Armageddon Studies, Saddam Hussein Parkway, Baghdad.'' Ambassador Wilson said relax, he'd been to Niger, spent "eight days drinking sweet mint tea and meeting with dozens of people,'' and there's nothing going on.

Well, on Wednesday in London, Lord Butler will publish his report into the quality of the intelligence on which rested Britain's case for going to war with Iraq. The report is said to be critical of some of Tony Blair's claims, supportive of others. And, among the latter, he says that the statements about Iraq and Niger are justified and supported by the intelligence. In other words, the British Government did learn that Saddam Hussein did seek significant quantities of uranium from Africa.

As a gazillion e-mails a day shrieked from my in-box back then, ''BUSH LIED!!!!!!" So where exactly in that State of the Union observation is the lie?

(Excerpt) Read more at suntimes.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bush43; marksteyn; sotu
Wonder if Wilson will say he is sorry???? yeah, right.
1 posted on 07/10/2004 6:29:51 AM PDT by Jewels1091
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To: Jewels1091

PRESS LIED - PEOPLE DIED!!!


2 posted on 07/10/2004 6:33:05 AM PDT by dandelion
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To: dandelion

Old Media will bury this story since it's old news, and no one cares about it anymore.
Don't watch for Sixty Minutes to do a mea culpa, either.
The only real thing that matters is the Bush administration's mysterious problem with public relations and communication. The media advisors (if there are any) for Bush are and have been AWOL for about a year now.
What the H are they waiting for? A Kerry win???


3 posted on 07/10/2004 6:37:56 AM PDT by Galtoid
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To: Galtoid

The Bush administration has repeatedly tried to "get out the message" on a number of fronts, but the press WILL NOT COVER HIM. Remember his famous speech about the handover in Iraq? The speech about the plan for the economy? Naw, of course not - the press will NOT cover a speech given by this president. They will not cover him at the convention, either - just watch. They didn't cover Condi Rice's speech at the last convention. Oh, you didn't know she was a featured at the last convention? Of course not - they wouldn't give the conservative sister face time on TV.

What you've never seen could fill an ocean. At this point, Jesus Christ himself could come down from the heavens, part the clouds, fry John Kerry with a bolt of lightning, then lift a twirling George Bush into the Air with Him and proclaim "This is My beloved candidate, with whom I am well pleased" and the press would simply report:

"John Kerry touched by God".


4 posted on 07/10/2004 6:52:16 AM PDT by dandelion
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To: Jewels1091; Pokey78

bump


5 posted on 07/10/2004 6:59:53 AM PDT by Paul_B (In Him we live, and move, and have our being.)
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To: Jewels1091
"One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line." - President Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program." - President Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face." - Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998

"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983." - Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

"We urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs." - Letter to President Clinton, signed by Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI), Tom Daschle (D-SD), John Kerry ( D - MA), and others Oct. 9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process." - Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies." - Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999

"There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has invigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies." - Letter to President Bush, Signed by Sen. BobGraham (D, FL,) and others, December 5, 2001

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them." - Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country." - Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power." - Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." - Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..." - Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force-- if necessary-- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security." - Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ... We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction." - Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002

"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do." - Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapon stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons." - Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction." - Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation .. And now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real." - Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003

SO NOW THESE SAME DEMOCRATS SAY PRESIDENT BUSH LIED, THAT THERE NEVER WERE ANY WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION, AND THAT HE TOOK US TO WAR UNECESSARILY !

TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT THE PRESIDENT LEADING US TO WAR!

6 posted on 07/10/2004 7:03:13 AM PDT by chainsaw (http://www.hanoi-john.org.)
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To: chainsaw

Required Reading at the Rep Convention BUMP!!! (and every day prior to, and afterwards...


7 posted on 07/10/2004 7:13:46 AM PDT by Christian4Bush (I approve this message: character and integrity matter. Bush/Cheney '04)
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To: Jewels1091

The Dems LIED!


8 posted on 07/10/2004 7:17:26 AM PDT by jmstein7 (A Judge not bound by the original meaning of the Constitution interprets nothing but his own mind.)
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To: Jewels1091

Ask the press to apologize now!


9 posted on 07/10/2004 7:17:47 AM PDT by jmstein7 (A Judge not bound by the original meaning of the Constitution interprets nothing but his own mind.)
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To: Jewels1091
This isn't an anti-war movement. This is a movement in denial.

Moore [!] like a bowel movement given the left's statements are all excrement.

10 posted on 07/10/2004 7:29:57 AM PDT by NonValueAdded ("We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good" HRC 6/28/2004)
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To: dandelion
"John Kerry touched by God".

BRILLIANT rant!

11 posted on 07/10/2004 7:31:53 AM PDT by Leroy S. Mort
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To: dandelion

What they did cover this week was kind of OK in the first part. Showing the TOTALLY inept al-Q'erry trying to milk a bull on the farms of Wisconsin was priceless.

After that, however, was the Edwardos Group Hug. We had 4 days of having to watch those 2 bumping uglies. Blech. I think Bill O'R did a segment on banning "freak dancing" at high school dances--there should be a comparison there someplace.

And THEN the NY Hatefest-palozza happened. It now seems to be backfiring for the Dims in a BIG way. Saying that hateful crap reflects the values of America? NO ONE can lie that well, not even them. And everyone seems to be backing away from Jabba the Moo-er, also.

God works in mysterious ways. I just have to keep my faith, no? The Dims look so awful that it JUST MIGHT be more "fashionable" to cover Bush/Cheney instead. McAwful is no Snakehead Carville.


12 posted on 07/10/2004 7:54:13 AM PDT by Watery Tart ("....Dick Cheney can be president."—GW Bush)
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To: chainsaw

Excellent list there!!

Cheney should tell the press to go "F" themselves!!!!!!!!


13 posted on 07/10/2004 8:20:02 AM PDT by FlashBack (Faith will not make our path easy, but it ill give us strength for the Journey.)
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To: Pokey78

Bush's State of the Union speech redeemed

July 11, 2004

BY MARK STEYN SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

Do you remember a year ago when the Democratic National Committee was putting out press releases headlined ''President Bush Deceives The American People"?

Yawn. What's new? But last summer the Bush Lie Of The Week was all to do with Saddam trying to buy uranium from Niger. CNN and Co. replayed endlessly the critical 16 words from the president's 2003 State of the Union Address:

''The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa."

Sixteen words that could break a presidency! Bush ''misled every one of us,'' huffed Sen. John Kerry. ''It's beginning to sound like Watergate,'' said Howard Dean. Joseph C. Wilson IV, the man the CIA sent to Africa to investigate, wrote a piece for the New York Times titled ''What I didn't find in Africa.''

Can you guess what he didn't find, dear reader? That's right, he didn't find a big package of uranium bearing the address label ''S. Hussein, Suite 27, the Saddam Hussein Centre for Armageddon Studies, Saddam Hussein Parkway, Baghdad.'' Ambassador Wilson said relax, he'd been to Niger, spent "eight days drinking sweet mint tea and meeting with dozens of people,'' and there's nothing going on.

Well, on Wednesday in London, Lord Butler will publish his report into the quality of the intelligence on which rested Britain's case for going to war with Iraq. The report is said to be critical of some of Tony Blair's claims, supportive of others. And, among the latter, he says that the statements about Iraq and Niger are justified and supported by the intelligence. In other words, the British Government did learn that Saddam Hussein did seek significant quantities of uranium from Africa.

As a gazillion e-mails a day shrieked from my in-box back then, ''BUSH LIED!!!!!!" So where exactly in that State of the Union observation is the lie?

Last summer, the comparatively minor matter of uranium from Niger was all over the front pages and the news shows. Do you think Butler's report will be? Do you think Terry McAuliffe and John Kerry and Howard Dean will be eating humble yellowcake?

In July last year, I wrote about the Bush Lie Of The Week in this space. The CIA had disowned the Niger story, and I pointed out that these were the same fellows who'd botched the Sudanese aspirin factory business, failed to spot 9/11 coming, etc., etc.

"So," I wrote, "if you're the president and the same intelligence bureaucrats who got all the above wrong say the Brits are way off the mark, there's nothing going on with Saddam and Africa, what do you do? Do you say, 'Hey, even a stopped clock is right twice a day'? Or, given what you've learnt about the state of your humint (human intelligence), is it likely they've got much of a clue about what's going on in French Africa? Isn't this one of those deals where the Brits and the shifty French (Niger's uranium operations are under the supervision of the French Atomic Energy Commission) are more plugged in?"

And so it's proved. The fact is almost every European intelligence service reckoned Saddam was trying to buy uranium in Africa. The only folks who didn't think so were the CIA.

Let's weigh their comparative interest in the story. The Financial Times revealed last week that one continental intelligence agency had had a uranium-smuggling operation involving Iraq under surveillance for three years. In return, the only primary investigation initiated by the most powerful nation on the face of the Earth was to send a narcissistic kook from a Saudi-funded think-tank on vacation for a week to sip mint tea with government stooges. He didn't even bother filing a written report, and the ''Bush spurned my advice!'' column he wrote for the Times reads like a bad travelogue: ''Through the haze, I could see camel caravans crossing the Niger river.'' After that, the great narcissist somehow managed to make himself the center of the story -- But hey, enough about Saddam's nuclear ambitions; let's talk about me.

A few weeks before 9/11, Reuel Marc Gerecht wrote a timely piece in the Atlantic Monthly on the woeful state of U.S. counter-terrorism intelligence in a CIA neutered by politically correct bureaucracy. Among Gerecht's many memorable quotes was this line from a young CIA man reflecting on an agency grown used to desk-bound life in Virginia: ''Operations that include diarrhea as a way of life don't happen.'' That's Niger in a nutshell: Diarrhea Central. Who'd want to be stationed there when they could be back at Langley monitoring the world's e-mail in an air-conditioned office?

But Niger is a 99.5 percent Sunni Muslim country with the world's second highest birth rate and a load of uranium. It's exactly the sort of place an intelligence agency in the war on terror ought to be keeping an eye on. And that doesn't mean sending Mint Tea Boy to write it up for the travel section.

That's the issue here: The CIA are tourists in the heart of darkness. This spring, the ever-complacent George Tenet told the 9/11 Commission that it would take another half-decade to rebuild the clandestine service. So three years after 9/11 the CIA says it needs another five years. Imagine if Franklin Roosevelt had turned to Tenet to start up the OSS, the CIA's wartime predecessor. In 1942, he'd have told the president not to worry, he'd have it up and running by 1950.

Bush didn't LIE!!!! He was right, and the CIA were wrong. That doesn't mean they LIED!!!! either. Intelligence is never 100 percent. You make a judgment, and in this instance the judgments of the British and Europeans were right, and the judgment of the principal intelligence agency of the world's hyperpower was wrong. That should be a cause of great concern -- for all Americans.

National security shouldn't be a Republican/Democrat thing. But it's become one because, for too many Americans, when it's a choice between Bush and anybody else, they'll take anybody else. So, in ''Fahrenheit 9/11,'' if it's a choice between Bush and Saddam, Michael Moore comes down on the side of the genocidal whacko and shows us lyrical slo-mo shots of kiddies flying kites in a Baathist utopia. In the Afghan war, if it's a choice between Bush and the women-enslaving gay-executing Taliban, Susan Sarandon and Co. side with the Taliban. And in the most exquisite reductio of this now universal rule, if it's a choice between Bush and the CIA, the left sides with the CIA.

There's one for the peace marches: Hey, hey, CIA/How many Bush lies did you expose today?

This isn't an anti-war movement. This is a movement in denial.


14 posted on 07/10/2004 11:12:47 AM PDT by WarrenC
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To: Galtoid

I don't think so. It is on the FNC newscycle. The WaPo itself was lied to by Wilson and they need to redeem their credibility. They are publishing this and the journo was on CSPAN yesterday, or so I read on FR.

The hate mantra is now: we would do everything Bush is doing only we would do it right (means give in to France and the Iranian Mullahs). Bush has gone from liar to incompetent.

How incompetent? The economy is doing nicely and 49% of investors agree that is so, according to Rasmussen tracking polls. Iraq is settling down. 20k troops come home this week. Returned troops are golden for us because they tell their families and neighbors that good things happened in Iraq. While the Afghan elections were postponed, it was only for a month (so far, I know). While oil is up, it does seem they have gotten the pipeline repair gig together in Iraq. I have noticed that the repairs happen fast, now. When Bagdad was bombed yesterday, I watched 6 police cars and a couple of emergency vehicles rush to the scene w/in moments. That did not happen a year ago.


15 posted on 07/10/2004 1:04:45 PM PDT by reformedliberal (Proud Bush-Cheney04 volunteer)
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To: Jewels1091

bttt


16 posted on 07/11/2004 2:41:05 AM PDT by lainde (Heads up...We're coming and we've got tongue blades!!)
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To: Jewels1091
Steyn notes what's been bugging me since Day One: Wilson didn't prepare a written report. If WalMart sends a junior auditor to Oshkosh to count petty cash, the auditor prepares a written report. The CIA sends a senior guy to investigate a matter of national importance and he doesn't prepare a teeny memo!

This matter stinks.

17 posted on 07/11/2004 5:01:30 PM PDT by aculeus
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