Hillary Clinton Mum on Pre-war Intel Report

2008 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton won't say whether she read a key intelligence report on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction before she voted in Oct. 2002 to authorize the Iraq war.

Asked directly by the Boston Herald whether she did her homework by reading the report on the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's WMDs, the paper reports that the Democratic frontrunner "declined to say."

Though billed in the press as a supporter of the war, the former first lady has been highly critical of the Bush administration's so-called rush to judgment of Iraq's pre-war threat.

But in Oct. 2002, while explaining why she intended to vote for the war, Clinton clearly left the impression that she had read all the intel on Saddam's WMDs that she could get her hands on.

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile-delivery capability and his nuclear program," she told the Senate before voting to authorize the war.

Asked last month whether she regretted her vote, Mrs. Clinton told NPR: "You know, I really can't talk about this on the fly. It's too important."

She had access to the information while she was co-President. Who cares if she read it as a senator. It was Billy Bob's boy, Tenet, who gave them the info. Not a Republican appointee. It was the Clinton intelligence apparatus, pared down as it was, that failed to get any info after Soddom kicked out the UN in 1998." ~ LA Conservative

You got that right.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1403970742/qid=1133117832/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/103-4850276-9333465?v=glance&n=507846

Future Jihad Terrorist Strategies Against America by Dr. Walid Phares http://www.futurejihad.com/

Excerpts from International early reviews

From Paulo Casaca, Socialist Member of the European Parliament. Chairman, NATO delegation at the EUP.

"Walid Phares Jihad anatomy"

The Islamist Jihad on the United States did not start on September eleven 2001; indeed it was preceded by several other attacks as well as a formal war declaration from Bin Laden. However, America was taken absolutely by surprise. Phares' book is the best comprehensive explanation so far of this paradox: American society - including its Academia, Public Opinion, Business and Political establishment - was made dormant by a systematic and unchallenged action from the Salafist circles, and that's the reason why of the success of the attack.

This book is a must read not only for all those in America who want to better understand their enemies but specially to those who are facing the "soft-jihad" infiltration in their societies that took place before in America.

From Abdallah Hanna, Member of Parliament, member of the Commission on Foreign Affairs and Defense, Beirut

From Beirut to Washington, Dr. Phares has gathered a quarter of a century of intellectual and academic experience in the field of political and historical analysis. His book, Future Jihad, brings to Western readers what many in the Arab World have learned about first hand, and brings to international readers a global understanding of the emerging threat of Terror. One can see Phares' research and writings, throughout the past few years, inspiring decision makers around the world. From an Arab and Middle Eastern perspective, Phares book is the closest analysis to the region's ideological and political realities. His projections and predictions are cutting edge and an exclusive source to understand the clash of ideas.

From the editor's review Palgrave/St Martin

This book presents a frightening new picture of what we can expect from terrorists in the future. Phares shows that there has been a fundamental misunderstanding about al Qaeda's ultimate goal in the West and what victory means to jihadists. Called by the press, 'the only person who really can read the minds of terrorists', Phares is uniquely qualified to identify the aims and strategies of the organizations waging war on the West. He answers such critical questions as: How long will this war last? Is the United States secure on the inside? Will it have to engage the jihadists worldwide in multiple campaigns and where? Future Jihad points the way for America to win the ideological war at the heart of jihad.

From Dr Alireza Fafarzadeh, Fox News Foreign Policy Analyst

Dr. Walid Phares is among the few whose expertise allows him to enunciate the differences between those who misuse the religion of Islam for their extremist, terrorist agenda, and the mainstream Muslims who believe in democracy, religious tolerance, and the rule of law.

From Colonel Kenneth Allard, USA (Ret.), Former Dean, National War College and NBC Defense Analyst

Dr. Phares has an unmatched knowledge of the Middle East with its tightly interwoven tapestry of language, religion, history and politics. He can bring an interdisciplinary approach to complex security issues. Unlike so many analysts, he can convey his encyclopedic knowledge of the Middle East in multiple languages.

From Dr. Robert Rabil, Professor of Middle East Studies at Florida Atlantic University and Scholar at the Washington Institute of Middle East Policy:

Future Jihad addresses the issue of how the nation was paralyzed in understanding the coming of "a" 9/11 and what should be done to prevent a future that the Jihadists wanted to see unfolding years ago. "Americans and other societies were led to believe that Jihadism wasn't a threat," argues Phares in his introduction. "It was a systematic and dramatic penetration of American and Western intellectual defenses that led to Terror thrusts for a whole decade." In his introduction, ten overwhelming questions challenges us: The gist of the questionnaire is revolutionary: Did we engage in a war which was launched against us, declared against us, and which signals were blurred by many among us? Richard Clarke told the American people that the Government failed the public. Phares responds: and who failed the Government and the public? Was there a Trojan Horse inside our own political culture?

From Dr Franck Salameh, Professor of Arabic Studies at Boston College:

"In his first chapter, Phares provides a clear historical definition of Jihad. In his second chapter, he clarifies who the Jihadists were, are and would become, both Salafists and Khumeinists. Future Jihad cannot be understood without a crystal clear reading of its historical roots. Other chapters elucidates the root cause of Jihadi-related conflicts: Chapter 3 clarifies the inter-Islamist struggle after the collapse of the Caliphate. Chapter 4, their alliance with the Nazis. Chapter 5: their clash with the communists. Chapter 6: Can they accept Israel."

From Professor Joseph Saouk, Oriental Studies. Uppsala University

"On September 11, 2001, many asked the question: Why do they hate us? Many more asked the question of who are they? Phares investigates these questions. How come a nation didn't know who its enemies were? Chapter 7 explains how did the Cold War shape the strategies of the Jihadists. Chapter 8 explains how an old ideology remodeled itself to target the West and Democracies after believing that it brought down the Soviet Union. Chapter 9 is crucial for the understanding of the road to 9/11, Madrid, London, and Fallujah: It is about the strategies developed separately by the Salafists and Khuneinists. In chapter 10, Phares asserts the inevitability of 9/11. In a sense, the author argues that the Jihadists have already won a blitzkrieg against America and the West by blurring their vision for more than a decade."

From Jacob Keryakes, Researcher in Islamism, Chief Linguist at NBC Cable

"When we read Bin Laden, Zawahiri, or Zarqawi's messages and see them repeated on al Jazeera, we often miss to see their big picture. Phares chapter 11 helps us visualize the greater image: The global Jihadists strategy against America, the West and emerging democracies. Often, we are compelled to debate the shortcomings in the so-called War on Terrorism. In fact, as Phares explains it in chapter 12, there were and still are deep root causes for America's causes for failures. Understanding how the US and Western systems were penetrated, mollified and almost defeated, is a sine qua non condition for the projection of Future Jihad. In a disturbing but fascinating chapter 13, the author of this absolutely indispensable book draws the picture of what could have been a strategically successful attack against the US national security. "Had Usama waited till 2008, argues Phares (as an example), America would have plunged into chaos and the world into disasters. Chapter 13 is the most dramatic message of the book: A future Jihad we can still avoid.

From Alfred Arian, Arabic Translator at MSNBC

"Phares' Future Jihad shed light on less addressed matters: Are the US and the Jihadists strategies clashing and how? In his chapter 14 the areas of confrontation are clarified: Terrorism, foreign policy, oil, education, ideology, media. Often we watch our American and Western debate in the media and academia missing the real points. It is important to argue about our views on the conflict, but it is as important and sometimes more important to see clear in how the Jihadists and their allies see it from their perspectives. Understanding the language and the political culture of Jihadism is a must. In chapter 15, Phares analyzes Jihad's second generation, the one al Qaida, its allies, Hezbollah and the global Jihadists produced, shepherded and are using in Britain, Holland, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Australia, France and beyond. The second generation that would extend the War with Terrorism for another decade or two, both inside America and around the world."

From Professor Dominic Mohammed, Jihadism analyst, Florida International University

In his chapter 16 of Future Jihad, Professor Walid Phares shows the reader what lays ahead: a Mutant Jihad. A movement, and ideology and resources that are shaping the years to come: Adaptation to modern technologies, penetration of democratic societies and of their educational and economic tissues. The new Jihadism has decades behind it, and is planning for a rupture in world security and international relations, as demonstrated by Phares. The battlefields are numerous, Iraq, Lebanon, Sudan, Kashmir, Chechniya, Algeria, Indonesia, the Philippines, the West, but the mother ship is global: It hasn't been reached yet. Only a war of ideas, and a series of strategic decisions as outlined in chapter 17, can begin the reversal of the offensive. Phares conclusion is enlightening: What did 9/11 do to us, to the Jihadists, and to world history? And more importantly, were are we in the War with Jihad Terrorism? Are we winning, are they winning and who will help us defeat Global Jihadism?

Book's Tables of Contents

Acknowledgments
List of Illustrations
Introduction
The Historical Roots of Jihad
Who Are the Jihadists?
After the Caliphate
The Nazi Alliance
The Communist Dilemma
Israel's Fate
What the Cold War Meant for the Future
The New Jihad
Jihadist Strategies against America
The Inevitability of 9/11
Bin Laden's Strategy against America
The Root Causes of America's Failure
Protecting Future Jihad
The Clash of Strategies: America Versus Jihad
America: Jihad's Second Generation
Mutant Jihad
Guidelines and Prescriptive Policies

Conclusion

Walid Phares is currently MSNBC/NBC terrorism and Mideast expert and a senior fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies in Washington. He has been a Professor of Middle East Studies and Ethnic and Religious Conflict at Florida Atlantic University and lectures worldwide. He regularly appears on NBC, Fox News, CNN, BBC, C-Span, Voice of America, al Jazeera, al Hurra, NPR International, and Abu Dhabi TV, among others and is a frequent contributor to US and international radio programs.

Phares conducts briefings to the State, Justice, Defense and Homeland Security Departments, the US Congress, the United Nations Security Council, and other international bodies on the Middle East, Jihadism, counterterrorism, democratization, al Qaeda and other issues. His columns and articles, in such venues as The Washington Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Denver Post, Indianapolis Star, San Diego Tribune, etc, have received much attention. He is a media communicator, and has the academic, professional, and insider credentials to offer an unprecedented analysis and prescription for the future of Jihad

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