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Bush wants to release the Saddam files but his intelligence chief stalls
THE WEEKLY STANDARD ^ | 03/20/2006 | Stephen F. Hayes

Posted on 03/11/2006 9:22:21 AM PST by kimosabe31

On February 16, President George W. Bush assembled a small group of congressional Republicans for a briefing on Iraq. Vice President Dick Cheney and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley were there, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad participated via teleconference from Baghdad. As the meeting was beginning, Mike Pence spoke up. The Indiana Republican, a leader of conservatives in the House, was seated next to Bush."Yesterday, Mr. President, the war had its best night on the network news since the war ended," Pence said."Is this the tapes thing?" Bush asked, referring to two ABC News reports that included excerpts of recordings Saddam Hussein made of meetings with his war cabinet in the years before the U.S. invasion. Bush had not seen the newscasts but had been briefed on them.

Pence framed his response as a question, quoting Abraham Lincoln: "One of your Republican predecessors said, 'Give the people the facts and the Republic will be saved.' There are 3,000 hours of Saddam tapes and millions of pages of other documents that we captured after the war. When will the American public get to see this information?

"Bush replied that he wanted the documents released. He turned to Hadley and asked for an update. Hadley explained that John Negroponte, Bush's Director of National Intelligence, "owns the documents" and that DNI lawyers were deciding how they might be handled.

Bush extended his arms in exasperation and worried aloud that people who see the documents in 10 years will wonder why they weren't released sooner. "If I knew then what I know now," Bush said in the voice of a war skeptic, "I would have been more supportive of the war.

"Bush told Hadley to expedite the release of the Iraq documents. "This stuff ought to be out. Put this stuff out."

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


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: 109th; bush; intelligencesummit; iraq; iraqdocs; negroponte; pence; prewardocs; saddam; saddamtapes; saddamtapesdocs; stephenhayes; wmd
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To: pbrown
The same Russia that's helping Iran with their nuclear plans, yet, Negroponte doesn't want to 'EMBARRASS' them.

Negroponte has been an anti-commie hero for years working in the Nixon, Reagan and Bush administration. To claim that Negroponte doesn't want to embarrass the Russians is to show a lack of knowledge in Negroponte's long anti-left record.

81 posted on 03/11/2006 11:50:48 AM PST by FreeReign
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To: FreeReign; Mad_Tom_Rackham
"These documents have provided, and continue to provide, actionable intelligence to ongoing operations. . . . It would be ill-advised to release these materials without careful screening because the material includes sensitive and potentially harmful information."

For months, Negroponte has argued privately that while the documents may be of historical interest, they are not particularly valuable as intelligence product

Ok, then....which is it?

82 posted on 03/11/2006 11:51:00 AM PST by tsmith130
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To: tsmith130
Ok, then....which is it?

The excerpt that you cite is not a Negroponte quote. Its source is nebulous.

83 posted on 03/11/2006 11:54:01 AM PST by FreeReign
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To: FreeReign
You believe Negroponte over Bush?

Negroponte, a sycophant for the UN.

84 posted on 03/11/2006 11:54:03 AM PST by processing please hold (Be careful of charity and kindness, lest you do more harm with open hands than with a clinched fist)
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To: FreeReign
A statement by his office in response to the recordings aired by ABC said, "Analysts from the CIA and the DIA reviewed the translations and found that, while fascinating from a historical perspective, the tapes do not reveal anything that changes their postwar analysis of Iraq's weapons programs."

Its source is nebulous.

Then I guess his office is a nebulous source.

85 posted on 03/11/2006 11:57:07 AM PST by tsmith130
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To: FreeReign
"These documents have provided, and continue to provide, actionable intelligence to ongoing operations. . . . It would be ill-advised to release these materials without careful screening because the material includes sensitive and potentially harmful information."

I don't think so FreeReign. This is just one of his numerous weak alibis. No one is telling him to release without reading first. Negroponte is footdragging on those documents that have already been vetted. He's protecting loudmouth libs from public exposure.

86 posted on 03/11/2006 12:00:02 PM PST by kimosabe31
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To: PISANO
let her put on her dominatrix outfit and tell them to shape up or suffer the consequences!!

Which would be first to ask for the consequences?
The French or Germans?

87 posted on 03/11/2006 12:01:10 PM PST by ASA Vet (Those who talk don't know, those who know don't talk.)
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To: pbrown
You believe Negroponte over Bush? Negroponte, a sycophant for the UN.

Bush said on February 16th that he wants the documents realeased.

Negroponte said after February 16th that the documents should not be released.

It doesn't logically follow(assuming the source on the quotes in this article are correct) that one has to believe either Bush or Negroponte over the other.

As I said before Negroponte is one of the all-time, anti-commie, hated-by-the-left, good guys. You have no idea who John Negroponte is, do you.

88 posted on 03/11/2006 12:03:03 PM PST by FreeReign
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To: FreeReign; Mad_Tom_Rackham
Really, and just why do you think he opposes the release of these documents? Don't say intelligence information could be compromised.

Read Mad_Tom_Rackham's post # 79 again. Your argument has been nullified.

89 posted on 03/11/2006 12:04:30 PM PST by processing please hold (Be careful of charity and kindness, lest you do more harm with open hands than with a clinched fist)
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To: FreeReign

FreeReign, I think you are Negroponte.


90 posted on 03/11/2006 12:04:52 PM PST by kimosabe31
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To: FreeReign

He's the king of Siam, right?


91 posted on 03/11/2006 12:06:23 PM PST by processing please hold (Be careful of charity and kindness, lest you do more harm with open hands than with a clinched fist)
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To: tsmith130
Its source is nebulous.

Then I guess his office is a nebulous source.

No, I said the source of the statement that was in your post was nebulous. You've now posted a different statement.

92 posted on 03/11/2006 12:06:31 PM PST by FreeReign
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To: tsmith130
Probably some Soviet, er, Russian oil company is going to hire Negroponte and/or associates after they do all the damage
they can while at Foggy Bottom.

Maybe the Russians contracted to buy a book by Negroponte?

Isn't that how it's done?

93 posted on 03/11/2006 12:10:54 PM PST by Calvin Locke
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To: FreeReign

His office's statements directly contradict his current statements.

Why? Save the he's a good guy speach. Why the deception if not to protect someone or some nation?


94 posted on 03/11/2006 12:12:05 PM PST by Diplomat
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To: pbrown
Really, and just why do you think he opposes the release of these documents? Don't say intelligence information could be compromised. Read Mad_Tom_Rackham's post # 79 again. Your argument has been nullified.

See above. What exactly don't you understand?

95 posted on 03/11/2006 12:15:01 PM PST by FreeReign
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To: Wolfstar
How do you know that anything in this story is true?

How about these lines in the article -

Bush extended his arms in exasperation and worried aloud that people who see the documents in 10 years will wonder why they weren't released sooner. "If I knew then what I know now," Bush said in the voice of a war skeptic, "I would have been more supportive of the war.

War skeptic dumb Bush eh? Somebody has an agenda!

96 posted on 03/11/2006 12:15:51 PM PST by Eagleami (Israeli Hero - Moses Hess - Communist Manifesto)
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To: El Gato
Yes. Post them on the web so that it's not just one translation that we have to believe. Heck! Let Al Jezeera have a field day!
97 posted on 03/11/2006 12:16:43 PM PST by Blue State Insurgent (ABAJO FIDEL)
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To: FreeReign

You are not making sense. Exactly what quote did you consider to be from a nebulous source?


98 posted on 03/11/2006 12:19:43 PM PST by tsmith130
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To: Diplomat
His office's statements directly contradict his current statements. Why? Save the he's a good guy speach. Why the deception if not to protect someone or some nation?

His office statement is vague. His subsequent statement is very specific to his reason.

First I wouldn't call it decpetion and second his motives could be -- god forbid -- national security as he states.

99 posted on 03/11/2006 12:19:47 PM PST by FreeReign
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To: Diplomat

If Negroponte is against these documents being released, maybe Paul Volker's name is in there somewhere. He investigated the OFF program and he was hand picked by Koffee. I don't know, I see plans, within plans, within plans.(Dune) I remember when the report on the OFF scandal was released. Many on FR believed that Volker was covering Annan's ass.


100 posted on 03/11/2006 12:20:03 PM PST by processing please hold (Be careful of charity and kindness, lest you do more harm with open hands than with a clinched fist)
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