Kerry Campaign Fact Sheet on Missing Iraqi Explosives

U.S. Newswire ^ | 10/25/2004 4:55:00 PM | Kerry-Edwards 2004

[Cincinatus' Wife]

To: National Desk, Political Reporter

Contact: Chad Clanton or Phil Singer, 202-464-2800, both of Kerry-Edwards 2004

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Kerry-Edwards 2004 released the following fact sheet today on missing Iraqi explosives:

THE BUSH BLAME GAME ON MISSING IRAQI EXPLOSIVES

It's bad enough that George W. Bush's administration failed to secure 380 tons of deadly explosives that have now gone missing from an Iraqi facility. Now they're blaming their incompetence on other priorities (like securing Iraq's lucrative oil fields) and, worse yet, on the Iraqis. What will it take for the Bush administration to ever accept responsibility for anything that goes wrong?

THE BLAME GAME

It's Not OUR Fault...

"There Were a Number of Priorities" -- Like Securing Oil Fields. Q But after Iraqi Freedom, there were those caches all around, wasn't the multinational force -- who was responsible for keeping track -- MR. McCLELLAN: At the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom there were a number of priorities. It was a priority to make sure that the oil fields were secure, so that there wasn't massive destruction of the oil fields, which we thought would occur. It was a priority to get the reconstruction office up and running. It was a priority to secure the various ministries, so that we could get those ministries working on their priorities, whether it was -- (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

"We Were Still Involved in Major Military Action." Q Weren't these -- there is some U.S. culpability, as far as -- MR. McCLELLAN: You're trying -- I think you're taking this out of context of what was going on. This was reported missing after -- when the interim government informed that these munitions went missing some time after April 9th of 2003, remember, that was when we were still involved in major military action at that point. And there were a number of important priorities at that point. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

...It's The Iraqis' Fault

"They're The Responsibility Of The Iraqi Forces." Q Scott, did we just have enough troops in Iraq to guard and protect these kind of caches? MR. McCLELLAN: See, that's -- now you just hit on what I just said a second ago, that the sites now are really -- my understanding, they're the responsibility of the Iraqi forces. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

But "Those Sites are Now the Responsibility of the Iraqi Government" Q Prior to the 10th, and the notification by the interim government, whose responsibility was it to keep track of these munitions, the IAEA or the multinational force in Iraq? MR. McCLELLAN: ...The sites now are the responsibility of the Iraqi government to secure. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

And the Administration Previously Assured Us All Sites Were Secured by the Coalition Pentagon told us the coalition had secured them all. A Pentagon spokesman, Bryan G. Whitman, said tonight, "All known Iraqi munitions sites are being secured by coalition forces." (New York Times, 9/6/2003)

THE COVER-UP

Bush Administration Knew of Missing Explosives For Weeks... Q When did the President find out? MR. McCLELLAN: That's why I said, we were informed on October 15th. Condi Rice was informed days after that. This is all in the last, what, 10 days now. Q She was informed days after October 15th? MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, and she informed the President. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

...Or Even Months. MR. McCLELLAN: No, no. First of all, I said that they reported that it went missing sometime after April 9th, 2003. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

Bush Administration Remained Silent About the Disappearance of Explosives. "American officials have never publicly announced the disappearance, but beginning last week they answered questions about it posed by The New York Times and the CBS News program '60 Minutes.'" (NYT, 10/25/04)

And In Fact Told Us We Were Safer: "We have led. Many have joined. And America and the world are safer. And part of our strategy for a safe and peaceful world is to continue to spread freedom. And freedom is on the march. (George W. Bush, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 10/15/04)

The world is better as these countries move towards self- government. And we are safer. Freedom, we know, is the best antidote to terrorism. (Dick Cheney, Rosemont, Minnesota, 10/22/04)

The most important result thus far is that the black-market network that supplied nuclear weapons technology to Libya, as well as to Iran and North Korea, has been shut down. And the world is safer as a result. (Dick Cheney, Rosemont, Minnesota, 10/22/04)

McClellan Wouldn't Says Whether Troops Had Been Alerted to Heightened Danger. Q Are U.S. troops under any kind of higher alert because there's enough munitions for like 50 car bombs? Is there, like, any kind of alert going on for them? Are they on any kind of higher standard? MR. McCLELLAN: I think you need to look at what we have done in terms of destroying munitions. As I point out, we've destroyed more than 243,000 munitions, we've secured another nearly 163,000 that will be destroyed. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

MISLEADERSHIP ON NUCLEAR RISKS

McClellan: Missing Explosives Not a Nuclear Proliferation Risk. MR. McCLELLAN: ... the first priority, from our standpoint, was to make sure that this wasn't a nuclear proliferation risk, which it is not. These are conventional high explosives that we are talking about. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

New York Times: Explosives Could Be Used For Nuclear Weapon. "The explosives could also be used to trigger a nuclear weapon, which was why international nuclear inspectors had kept a watch on the material." (NYT, 10/25/04)

Iraqi Nuclear Weapon-Making Materials "Disappeared Without a Trace." The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that "(e)quipment and materials that could be used to make nuclear weapons are disappearing from Iraq but neither Baghdad nor Washington appears to have noticed." Satellite imagery shows that entire buildings that once housed high-precision equipment and materials, like electron-beam welders and high-strength aluminum, have been dismantled, and similar materials "have been removed from open storage areas in Iraq and disappeared without a trace." (Reuters, 10/11/04)

Troops Searched al Qaqaa; Found No WMD But Found "Indications of Looting." "According to the Pentagon official, coalition forces, who went to the area around Al Qaqaa in the months after the war ended, searched 32 bunkers and 87 other buildings. They found no weapons of mass destruction, but indications of looting." (CNN.com, 10/25/04)

APATHETIC ABOUT LOOTING CONCERNS

April 2003: Bush Was Unconcerned About Looting. When asked in April 2003 about concerns of looting, Bush said: "The statue comes down on Wednesday, and the headlines start to read, 'Oh, there's disorder.' Well, no kidding... But just like the military campaign was second-guessed, I'm sure the plan is being -- but we will be successful." (Bush, 4/13/03)

April 2003: Rumsfeld on Looting: "Stuff Happens". "'Freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things,' Rumsfeld said. ... Looting, he added, was not uncommon for countries that experience significant social upheaval. 'Stuff happens,' Rumsfeld said." (CNN, 4/12/03)

Today: "There Was Some Looting." MR. McCLELLAN: Remember, early on -- during and at the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom, there was some looting. Some of it was organized that was going on in the country. (White House Press Gaggle, 10/25/04)

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[Cincinatus' Wife]

Drudge ***... [The source behind the NYT story first went to CBSNEWS' 60 MINUTES last Wednesday, but the beleaguered network wasn't able to get the piece on the air as fast as the newspaper could print. Executive producer Jeff Fager hoped to break the story during a high-impact election eve broadcast of 60 MINS on October 31.]

... But tonight, NBCNEWS reported: The 380 tons of powerful conventional explosives were already missing back in April 10, 2003 -- when U.S. troops arrived at the installation south of Baghdad!

An NBCNEWS crew embedded with troops moved in to secure the Al-Qaqaa weapons facility on April 10, 2003, one day after the liberation of Iraq.

According to NBCNEWS, the HMX and RDX explosives were already missing when the American troops arrived.

"The U.S. Army was at the site one day after the liberation and the weapons were already gone," a top Republican blasted from Washington late Monday. ....***

Report: Explosives already gone when U.S. troops arrived (CNN reporting on this now)

Kerry wants answers on missing explosives

[GeronL]

The press will run with it, true or not.

[Keith in Iowa]

It will be so sweet when they wake up and find they have to retract the scat-sheet... I love it!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Such a long caption for a photo.

Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (news - web sites) (L) is joined by former President Bill Clinton (news - web sites) at a campaign rally in Philadelphia, October 25, 2004. Kerry and Clinton stood shoulder to shoulder Monday to call for new management in Iraq (news - web sites) and a White House that fights for the middle class. A slimmed-down Clinton, still recuperating from heart surgery, accused President George W. Bush (news - web sites) and his Republican allies of trying to scare voters about the Massachusetts senator and frighten them away from the polls on November 2. Kerry called Bush 'wrong and reckless' on Iraq and said he had failed as commander in chief by committing 'one of the greatest blunders' of his administration by not securing tons of powerful explosives in Iraq. REUTERS/Tim Shaffer US ELECTION

[Jim Robinson]

Speaking of great blunders.... bwahahahahhaha!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

He he he...

[nopardons]

Over here!

[RichInOC]

He's tanned. He's rested. He's horny...

[Cold Heat]

They won't retract it, but they will likely ease up.

The problem is the stuff in not quite yet accounted for.

I am sure that once they have time to go through all the demo records, they will be able to account for some, if not the majority.

The whole country was loaded with all kinds of stuff.

The initial bombing runs by the coalition and the 52s often reported large secondaries.

Also, they should have some old pics from the sat surveillance of this area and may be able to produce pics of truckloads of stuff leaving the facility prior to the invasion. Their were many reports of that if I recall.

[LesbianThespianGymnasticMidget]

Clinton looks sad. He needs a new teenage intern. Given the dem stance on gay marriage, why not a flaming homosexual who likes to wear blue dresses and indulging in Cuban cigar suppositories.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bombshell for Bush: 350 tons of explosives go missing in Iraq
Belfast Telegraph (subscription), United Kingdom - 7 minutes ago
... in a lengthy front-page story, the missing stockpiles - some 350 tons in all - are of HMX, RMX and PETN, extremely powerful, conventional explosives that are ...

IAEA Tells Security Council of Missing Explosives in Iraq
PolitInfo.com, Germany - 10 minutes ago
The United Nations nuclear agency has told the Security Council that nearly 350 tons of explosives is missing in Iraq and may have been stolen. ...

Budget Bombs
Slate - 10 minutes ago
... world-wide newsbox with Bush on the campaign trail battling (without mentioning) bad news, in particular the missing 380 tons of high-grade explosives in Iraq. ...

Bush, Kerry talk security
San Mateo Daily Journal, CA - 11 minutes ago
... White House spokesman Scott McClellan sought to allay concern over the threat posed by 377 tons of explosives missing from the Al Qaqaa military installation. ...

Kerry seizes on explosives in speeches
Boulder Daily Camera, CO - 14 minutes ago
... the disappearance in Iraq of nearly 380 tons of high explosives that US forces were supposed to secure, as Sen. John Kerry seized on the missing cache as "one ...

What the papers say
BBC News, UK - 14 minutes ago
... before the election. Bombshell for Bush announces the Independent, as 350tonnes of explosives go missing in Iraq. The paper describes ...

Kerry drops Iraq bombshell on Bush
ic Wales, UK - 18 minutes ago
Senator John Kerry cited the Iraq war and a huge cache of missing explosives as proof that President George Bush has "failed the test of being commander in ...

UN reports explosives stolen in Iraq, Kerry blames Bush
Canton Repository (subscription), OH - 28 minutes ago
VIENNA, Austria — The UN nuclear agency warned Monday that insurgents in Iraq may have obtained nearly 400 tons of missing explosives that can be used in the ...

Bombings kill at least 8 in Iraq
Boston Globe, MA - 30 minutes ago
... 50 Iraqi military recruits were found massacred, the bombings occurred as a UN agency confirmed that several hundred tons of explosives were missing from a ...

400 tons of explosives missing
The Morning Journal, United States - 32 minutes ago
VIENNA, Austria -- The UN nuclear agency warned Monday that insurgents in Iraq may have obtained nearly 400 tons of missing explosives that can be used in the ...

Tons of explosives missing from Iraq
Valletta Times, Malta - 42 minutes ago
Nearly 380 tons of explosives are missing from a site near Baghdad that was part of Saddam Hussein's dismantled atom bomb programme but was never secured by ...

Stumping for her son
Allentown Morning Call, PA - 43 minutes ago
... a thunderous welcome from the crowd as he thanked Clinton and ripped Bush over news reports Monday that revealed 380 tons of explosives were missing from an ...

Clinton, Kerry team up on Bush
ABS CBN News, Philippines - 43 minutes ago
... trail on Monday, with Clinton warning Bush wants to scare voters and Kerry slamming Bush's "incompetence" in not protecting tons of missing explosives in Iraq. ...

Administration downplays reports of missing explosives
WHNT, AL - 45 minutes ago
PENTAGON The Pentagon says US forces didn't find the nearly 400 tons of explosives the UN nuclear agency warns has disappeared from a former Iraqi military ...

Bombings in Iraq claim more lives
London Free Press, Canada - 46 minutes ago
... 50 Iraqi military recruits were found massacred, the bombings occurred as a UN agency confirmed that several hundred tonnes of explosives were missing from a ...

US loses explosives in Iraq
London Free Press, Canada - 46 minutes ago
Senator John Kerry cited the Iraq war and a huge cache of missing explosives yesterday as proof US President George W. Bush has "failed the test of being ...

...................................

[RichInOC]

Leave Chelsea's boyfriend out of this.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Kerry is counting on the msm.

Kerry is hoping voters will believe American soldiers are dying because of Bush let the enemy get hold of weapons.

Will the msm correct the record?

All news outlets need to hear outrage from the voters.

[GeronL]

EXACTLY. Thats how it will be reported. BY NOW they all know it was not true, but they do not care. That list you posted deserves its own thread.

[Mo1]

A slimmed-down Clinton, still recuperating from heart surgery

For someone who just had Open Heart Surgery .. He sure did swing his arms around a lot and gave big hugs to folks at the rally yesterday

[Cincinatus' Wife]

An amazing amount of quotes and "facts" from the Kerry camp.

You'd almost think they knew this was coming.......


I guess we must believe they knew this was comming.

[Ragnarok105]

Are you trying to imply he faked a heart condition and an ensuing operation...?

[Mo1]

Hmmmmm .. wonder if it was Chad that was shopping this to 60 minutes and NYT

[Prime Choice]

Sounds like Kerry and the Leftist media are definitely coordinating their attacks. Gee...wasn't John McVain's Campaign Finance Reform supposed to stop these sorts of shenanigans??

</dripping sarcasm>

[Mo1]

faked?? ... No

But the reported that last week or so .. they kept saying that Clinton wasn't do very well with his recuperation