Rove admits to error on Iraq as Bush strategist

YahooNews ^ | 3/2/10 | BETH FOUHY/AP

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Political strategist Karl Rove says President George W. Bush made the right decision to launch the Iraq war in 2003, but the former White House adviser admits the failure to find weapons of mass destruction badly damaged the administration's credibility.

In his new memoir, "Courage and Consequence," Rove blames himself for not pushing back against claims that Bush had taken the country to war under false pretenses, calling it one of the worst mistakes he made during the Bush presidency.

[LanaTurnerOverdrive]

the propaganda that WMDs were the chief reason for the war in the first place

Oh really? Please enjoy this video of GW admitting that "the main reason we went into Iraq was WMD. Turns out they didn't have any."

The only thing that would have made it worse would have been him adding "now watch this drive."

[GBA]

The truth about Iraqi WMDs is “out there” and we may someday know what it is, but I doubt it’s in Rove’s book.

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

No, not yet....

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

They put the emphasis on the wrong thing. Saddam’s terror connections, his al Qaeda ties and his likely involvement in the 9/11 attack were the primary reasons for the invasion and should have been presented as such. WMD’s were the secondary issue. With all the help Saddam was getting from corrupt Security Council member states, we should have anticipated those same states helping him get rid of them.

I see Colin Powell’s fingerprints all over the war strategy. And because it was his exit strategy that kept Saddam in power, he wanted no part of any Saddam/AQ/911 connection.

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

“I see Colin Powell’s fingerprints all over the war strategy.”

Ding...ding...ding!!!

[Bryan24]

I don’t Yahoo, but it is not surprising.

[LanaTurnerOverdrive]

Looks like I forgot to include the URL with GW admitting the main reason we went into Iraq was for WMD and that there weren't any. Sorry. Please enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_A77N5WKWM

[LanaTurnerOverdrive]

WMD’s were the secondary issue

You wish. "The main reason we went into Iraq was WMD" straight from the horse's (GW) mouth:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_A77N5WKWM

You'll have to change up your strategy a little bit after you view this one.

[WhistlingPastTheGraveyard]

Yeah, I see that's your talking point. I don't have to change anything. Bush's emphasis on weapons that could be and were easily moved in the 18 month build-up to war was a mistake. De-emphasizing Saddam's documented terror-ties, included his connection to al Qaeda was a huge mistake. But I said this in my first post. You ignored that and pushed forward with your agenda. Because the facts of the Saddam/AQ connection are like poison to anti-war zealots like yourself.

But while we have you here, explain this away for everyone:

In addition, al Qaeda reached an understanding with the government of Iraq that al Qaeda would not work against that government and that on particular projects, specifically including weapons development, al Qaeda would work cooperatively with the Government of Iraq.

TEXT: US GRAND JURY INDICTMENT AGAINST USAMA BIN LADEN (November, 1998)

And there's more. Lots more. We'll take them one at a time.

[stylin19a]

what a crap headline

[EyeGuy]

“Oh really? Please enjoy this video of GW admitting that “the main reason we went into Iraq was WMD. Turns out they didn’t have any.”

#####

Look I can’t help it if the dolt can’t even get the history of his own Administration right.

He just stupidly helps further the anti-war propaganda of the Left. Those of us that were actually paying attention remember the litany of valid reasons given for the take-down of Saddam’s regime, of which the presence of WMDs was just one.

[dragnet2]

Look I can’t help it if the dolt can’t even get the history of his own Administration right.

LOL!! What a knee slapper...

Thanks for the laugh, I needed that.

[meandog]

Rove you magnificent bastard!

[Gene Eric]

Am I wrong to argue that Bush was concerned about the threat of imminent danger, and not actual imminent danger?

[Ditter]

Bush made a mistake in not going into Iraq sooner before Saddam moved all of his WMD’s out of the country.

[Lakeshark]

Rove blames himself for not pushing back against claims that Bush had taken the country to war under false pretenses

The new tone approach was a disaster, leaving a void in political discourse the left drove several trucks through. Rove is finally getting around to accepting my criticism of W.

:-)

[TChris]

Bush made a mistake in not going into Iraq sooner before Saddam moved all of his WMD’s out of the country.

Bingo.

The complicit dweebs at the UN fully bear the blame for letting those weapons vanish.

Bush should have at least yelled long and loud all over the news over that one, or just ignored the UN and gone after him, as you suggest.

[ohioWfan]

And if Rove and Bush had fought back, would that have stopped the left's truckloads of lying garbage from controlling public opinion?

There's where the debate is, Lakeshark.

President Bush defended his Iraq strategy in countless speeches and statements, but it was only heard by those of us who were looking and listening.

While it is definitely arguable that Bush should have fought back harder (I certainly wanted him to), I don't think that his doing so would have overcome the media-culture-political leftists' incessant, screaming lies.

Perhaps it really was best for him to just stay strong and WIN the war, and let history be the judge. I'm pretty sure that's what he still thinks.

[ohioWfan]

Wow. That is a great compilation of the truth, ETL.

THANK you!

[Lakeshark]

This may be a moot point, because he simply didn't respond very well, and we'll never know.

But if we take Reagan as example, the left and the media did the same garbage truck dumping on him, and the Reagan approach worked a whole lot better than the new tone approach, wouldn't you agree?