Posted on 10/10/2004 4:59:30 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
For years, Saddam Hussein showed himself to be a master practitioner of the big bluff. Everyone outside Iraq and just about everyone inside believed that he harbored a secret stockpile of weapons of mass destruction.
[snip]
Saddam made a calculated decision, says the [Duelfer] report, that getting out from under sanctions was of paramount importance. He opted for a "tactical retreat" by ordering the elimination of what he had left: all biological, chemical and nuclear programs were abandoned, stockpiles destroyed.
But according to the report, former officials say they "heard him say or inferred" that he "intended to resume" developing his chemical- and nuclear-weapon capability—though biological warfare no longer interested him—once sanctions were lifted. The regime had "no formal written strategy or plan" to do so, but lieutenants say they "understood" that was his goal "from their long association with Saddam and his infrequent, but firm, verbal comments to them."
To hasten the day, Saddam turned his cunning to sanctions busting. He bought into the oil-for-food program in 1996 to acquire hard currency that could salvage his rock-bottom economy and pay for potential dual-use equipment on the black market. He personally doled out vouchers, which allowed recipients to buy Iraqi oil at a cheap price and then sell it for a quick profit, to foreign officials and companies, notably in France, Russia and China, that were expected to lobby their governments to lift sanctions. His wiles, said the report, had nearly scuttled the embargo by 2001.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
Looks like Saddam bluffed against the wrong poker player.
Saddam's deceptions on WMD are a lot like Kerry's deceptions on his "plan."
Does the report actually say that?
If it does, it's an implicit admission that Saddam planned to reconstitute his chem/bio/nukes at the earliest opportunity.
'Tactical retreat' means feinting retreat while planning a counterattack.
Saddam's WMD programs were like weeds with the leaves sheared off, leaving the roots untouched. Just wait a short while and you've got dandelions all over the yard.
Kerry's "plan" is, absent U.N. approval which would never occur, to only fight after we have been struck first.
I haven't read ALL of yet, but what I have read in the report shows it to be a group project. One paragraph says he ordered everything destroyed when he realized inspectors would be coming back, another paragraph says he ordered key information and materials to be hidden away - like the guy who was ordered to bury a centrifuge and key nuclear documents in his garden.
The report lists specific things that were found and that were said, but the section summaries all say 'but the evidence was inconclusive'. As someone posted a couple days ago, they found rockets with sarin, at least 53 of them, 30+ in one place, clearly indicating that the WMD were NOT all destroyed, yet the conclusion is that there is no evidence that those were held out on purpose instead of accidentally missed.
The report was apparently written to walk the line between outlining what was found and not supporting the administration. That ongoing battle between the CIA and the Bush Administration...
That follows what I've gotten from it too: The evidence that most everything was destroyed was more from it not being found than it was that there was an actual intent to destroy it all.
Right. And the question of whether there was any actual research/production of chemical or biological weapons was inconclusive because all the potential facilities had either been scrubbed with toxic chemicals to hide it or looted. That's like the scientists who will never say conclusively that something is possible or impossible, because as a scientist nothing is absolutely certain and nothing can be completely ruled out.
Further, we've found via satelite, multiple entire building complexes that were destroyed and plowed under in the run-up to the resumation of the war.
But that's not "conclusive" either, is it? Just incredible...
I don't know why all parties continue to report that no WMDs were found in Iraq. The Duelfer Repost states that 53 Chemical WMDs have been found in Iraq since June of this year. The complete report is available on the following CIA website:
http://www2.cia.gov/Iraqs_WMD_Vol3.pdf
Check out Page 30.
Forty one SAKR-18 Sarin tipped rockets were found in one location. The SAKR-18 is an Egyption manufactured copy of the Soviet BM-21. Each Rocket has a range of 20-40 Km depending on the rocket motor and carries a 38 Kg war head. This particular version of the SAKR carries the capability of dispersing smoke for battlefield concealment. Anyone of these fired into a population center or smuggled into a public gathering could easily inflict 10X – 100X the casualties of 911. The real danger was in one of these getting into the hands of terrorists.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.