[defenderSD]

Another idea to keep in mind is that some of the best evidence for Saddam's WMD programs probably came from informants and through the powerful electronic surveillance capabilities of the NSA. We can't disclose publicly evidence from informants, because of course that would put their lives in danger and make it very difficult to recruit informants in other countries in the future. We also cannot disclose most of the information gathered by the NSA, because that would allow Saddam's regime to deduce some of the capabilities of the NSA, i.e., what kind of communications we are able to intercept. If they figured out some of these capabilities, they could tell the whole world and then rogue regimes like Iran would start to take counter-measures to make it more difficult to do electronic surveillance on them. So the NSA could lose the effectiveness of some of it's methods, and in this era of nuclear weapons, losing some of those methods could be disastrous some day.

Withholding sensitive intelligence from the public is called "protecting sources and methods." It made Bush's job much more difficult but that's all part of the burden of the Presidency.

[billbears]

Another idea to keep in mind is that some of the best evidence for Saddam's WMD programs probably came from informants

Would any of these 'informants' be disenfranchised former Iraqis with an ax to grind against Hussein? Like Chalabi? Only cost us around $400,000 to get his 'information' didn't it? Guess that was some of my tax dollars going for a good cause (even though I can't seem to find the power to spend tax dollars like that in the Constitution)

We can't disclose publicly evidence from informants, because of course that would put their lives in danger and make it very difficult to recruit informants in other countries in the future. We also cannot disclose most of the information gathered by the NSA, because that would allow Saddam's regime to deduce some of the capabilities of the NSA, i.e., what kind of communications we are able to intercept

But yet they were able to disclose a rather specific list of information received from the 'informants' (types of supposed weapons, locations of supposed weapons, etc) to get buy in for the police action. Hmmm......

Oh I see!! It's okay to release information to get the buy in for the military action but when the military action doesn't find the information as it was told to us, it's not okay to release information. Makes so much sense now....

[Peach]

Good points; as I said, I think relatively good arguments can be made with regard to letting the left continue to spew about WMD. There aren't similar excuses for letting the left get away with lying about other key aspects of the war, however.