Probably a pretty true statement - I think we sometimes get to focused and allow ourselves into a "Dem premise" - that is "large stockpiles of WMD has to be found for Iraq to be a success or worth it" -
This is a false premise - whether Saddam had large stockpiles or not..is mute - The world is safer with him gone - He was a threat to the world - Al Qeade did not have WMD and they hit us hard on Sept 11th (they were still a threat without WMD....just like Saddam was) -
The fact is Saddam would not show his hand - he kept things hidden, etc - Through the leadership of GWB we acted!! - Under GWB we will not allow a gathering threat to grow strong, we will act to keep America safe - Period.
With that said, I myself am not giving much hope to this report of WMD link coming out in Sept -
Actually, WMD would be very nice to find as it would silence critics who have, for now, the moral highground on the issue. I hate ceding the moral highground to them, but as of now, the perception is that they have the highground. Sickening.
It is really easier to beleive that Saddam got his WMD out of Iraq during the yearlong buildup to the war - the longest telegraphed punch in history. To think otherwise would mean to think that not only our CIA was wrong (and had been wrong for years) but UK Intel, Russian Intel, Isreali Intel, and others were very wrong too.
Not likely, but possible. But as I said, not likely.
What's disconcerting to me is the way the admin handled it - there was no need to press the WMD issue as the primary reason for military action. We all stuck up for the admin (rightly) and now are vulnerable to the conventional wisdom - probably wrong - is that there were no WMD.
The much more logical conclusion (which should be the conventional wisdom, I suppose) is that the WMD were moved or dismantled in the year-long 'rush' to war, which is laughable when you realize the whole so called 'rush' was over a year long.
Bush & co has really failed to communicate that as a logical and viable position. As it stands, it becomes a faint apologists lament. Not good enough.
And I know the media is 90%+ liberal/leftist and will do what it can to paint the admin in a bad light, but that's not important. The admin still has to communicate their message, and if old ways don't work it's incumbent on the admin to think up some new ways.
A liberal media is a reason for this confusion, but it certainly isn't an excuse. Our side really has to start kicking arse, taking names, and getting creative, rather than lament about how the deck is stacked against us.
If the deck is stacked against us, think up a new card game, and fast, so that the stacked deck is neutralized.
I like Dubya and will vote for him (there really is no choice) but his admin really has to learn to communicate better. This is their main falling, whether he looks befuddled at press conferences or just comes off as hiding the ball, he and his posse become increasingly difficult to defend.