The Explanation Hillary Clinton Owes

Washington Post ^ | Tuesday, February 13, 2007 | Richard Cohen

[DBCJR]

Yet another man has betrayed Hillary Clinton. This time it's George W. Bush, who not only deceived her about WMDs but, when granted congressional authorization to go to war in Iraq, actually did so. This came as a surprise to her,... I don't want to know how President Bush failed Hillary Clinton [but] how she failed her country.

"From almost the first day they got into office," Clinton said ... the Bush administration was "trying to figure out how to get rid of Saddam Hussein." If that was the case ...then how come she now says she did not think Bush, armed with a congressional resolution, would hurry to war? ... I fault [Hillary, Dodd, Biden and Edwards], though, for passing the blame to Bush as the guy who misled them. They all had sufficient knowledge ... Can it only be coincidence that all the other Democratic senators [beside Obama]now running for president voted for the war? Can it also be a coincidence that they voted as a majority of the American people at the time wanted? Not a single one of them bucked the zeitgeist, yet other Democratic senators -- 21 of them -- voted against the resolution. They were the ones not running for president.

The zeitgeist has reversed course. A clear majority of Americans and a preponderance of Democrats now oppose the war and have no confidence in Bush's handling of it...

Too often when a candidate throws his hat into the ring, he tosses principle out the window. Yet this is precisely what we want in a president -- principles and the courage to stick to them. Instead of Clinton saying she had been misled by Bush... I'd like to hear an explanation of how she thinks she went wrong and ...how she failed her country.

[DBCJR]

How dishonesty makes one look stupid!

[Patrick1]

The left eating their own. Got to love that!

[Doogle]

Instead of Clinton saying she had been misled by Bush... I'd like to hear an explanation of how she thinks she went wrong and ...how she failed her country.

..fat chance of hearing anything close. Two reasons, a liberal never ever admits to being wrong..second, the MSM will not pound such questions at her...it just ain't gonna happen

[stm]

The biggest explanation she owes is why she should breath the same air as the rest of us. I would like to see her answer for why she's not an oxygen thief.

[mortal19440]

Wasn't the vote in October and the election in November? I believe that little Tommy Dasshole delayed the debate until fall and then they were backed into a corner. They started bitching about their votes as soon as they were reelected.

[avacado]

"Yet another man has betrayed Hillary Clinton. This time it's George W. Bush, who not only deceived her about WMDs..."

No..... that was her husband who did that.

"CLINTON: Good evening.

Earlier today, I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces. Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors.

The hard fact is that so long as Saddam remains in power, he threatens the well-being of his people, the peace of his region, the security of the world.

The best way to end that threat once and for all is with a new Iraqi government -- a government ready to live in peace with its neighbors, a government that respects the rights of its people."

President Clinton
Oval Office Address to the American People
December 16, 1998
http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1998/12/16/transcripts/clinton.html

[vetsvette]

Actually, my memory is that they demanded a vote before the election so that they could prove to the world that they were not the wusses that we, and they, know they really are.

[nctexan]

Cohen misses the elephant in the room for Hillary. She was the 'assistant President' from 1993 to 2001.

The White House had the same level of intelligence on Iraq as GWB. The Clinton position (along with most of the rest of the world) was Iraq required regime change, had WMD, and was a major supporter of terrorists.

There is no indication (anywhere) that the situation on the ground or the intelligence picture changed dramatically in the 1.5 years of Bush before her vote.

The MSM never calls her on this since it exposes the position of the DEMs on Iraq prior to Bush.

While this might seem like a hit piece on Hillary, it is just more MSM air cover for the DEMs. (So what if it wings Hillary, Obama is 'elevated' in this piece)

[OESY]

Our president misled us into war? Which president?

The Iraq Liberation Act was passed 360-38 in the year 1998.

Here's the relevant part of the act:

It should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime.

SEC. 6. WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL FOR IRAQ.

Consistent with section 301 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 (Public Law 102-138), House Concurrent Resolution 137, 105th Congress (approved by the House of Representatives on November 13, 1997), and Senate Concurrent Resolution 78, 105th Congress (approved by the Senate on March 13, 1998), the Congress urges the President to call upon the United Nations to establish an international criminal tribunal for the purpose of indicting, prosecuting, and imprisoning Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi officials who are responsible for crimes against humanity, genocide, and other criminal violations of international law.

SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE FOR IRAQ UPON REPLACEMENT OF SADDAM HUSSEIN REGIME.

It is the sense of the Congress that once the Saddam Hussein regime is removed from power in Iraq, the United States should support Iraq's transition to democracy by providing immediate and substantial humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people, by providing democracy transition assistance to Iraqi parties and movements with democratic goals, and by convening Iraq's foreign creditors to develop a multilateral response to Iraq's foreign debt incurred by Saddam Hussein's regime.


So, who voted for the Iraq Liberation Act? John Kerry, Ted Kennedy and Nancy Pelosi. You know who else voted for it? Every Democrat and Republican in the Senate. Bill Clinton signed it into law October 31, 1998.



The war may have been Bush's, but the law stating that the overthrow of Saddam Hussein and the establishment of democracy in Iraq was U.S. policy was in fact a rare example of bi-partisan agreement. Bush simply put his predecessor's policies and intent into action after securing authorization from Congress and a unanimous resolution from the UN Security Council.


Complete legislation: http://www.iraqwatch.org/government/US/Legislation/ILA.htm



Do you think our president, Bill Clinton, misled us back in 1998?
Were 360 of our finest representatives and senators all duped by this guy?



Some contemporary quotes:

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face." - Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998

"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the US Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs." - Letter to President Clinton, signed by Sense. Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others Oct. 9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process." - Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

"Hussein has chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies." - Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999

"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country." - Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power." - Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." - Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force-- if necessary-- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security." - Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weep on stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons." - Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation ... And now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction. So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real." - Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003


So what do you suppose they told the new president, George Bush, to do about Iraq? And, which president was doing the misleading, if any? Could it be Hillary's husband?

.

[siunevada]

I like this line also:

Their purpose is to protect the national interest of the United States, and indeed the interests of people throughout the Middle East and around the world.

[willgolfforfood]

If there was any karma in the universe, those Code Pink twits would shout that question at her every day for the next 20 months.

[dcf]

So she was for the war before she was against the war. Where have I heard that before? Hmmm....

[Doogle]

If there was any karma in the universe, those Code Pink twits would shout that question at her every day for the next 20 months.

goes back to my point #2..they might shout at her, but who's going to report it?

[highlander_UW]

"From almost the first day they got into office," Clinton said ... the Bush administration was "trying to figure out how to get rid of Saddam Hussein."

What a liar! Maybe she might recall this...

"My Administration has pursued, and will continue to pursue, these objectives through active application of all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. The evidence is overwhelming that such changes will not happen under the current Iraq leadership."

And was this from Pres. Bush?...NO, it was signed by WILLIAM J. CLINTON on Oct. 31, 1998...maybe the liar might recall the Iraq Liberation Act that her husband signed.

[Doogle]

Headline: Former President Clinton say's that his recent bout with hoof and mouth disease has left his lower lip scarred for life after numerous non-sexual contacts with "that woman"

[AaronInCarolina]

This, from Christopher Hitchens' latest column at slate.com:

After speaking to the U.N. General Assembly meeting of 2006, President Jalal Talabani of Iraq found himself in a room with President Bush and former President Clinton. He embraced them both. "Thank you," he said to Clinton, "for signing the law that called for the liberation of Iraq. And thank you, Mr. Bush, for being the one to implement it."

[Cobra64]

Please read the quotations in this link.

We've sent it to everyone we know, and FReepers may want to do likewise.

http://www.freedomagenda.com/iraq/wmd_quotes.html

(can anyone hotlink it?)

[JerseyDvl]

Great Post...saving!

[Chi-townChief]

Hmmm ... nothing about "regime change"-1998 or that pesky little co-declaration of war that Hussein/Osama made on us about a year later.

[wouldntbprudent]

Actually, my memory is that they demanded a vote before the election so that they could prove to the world that they were not the wusses that we, and they, know they really are.

This is exactly what happened.

They voted FOR the war, but not out of principle, only out of expediency.