Yeah, that was a sad moment in a long series of idiotic moves.
We went into Iraq based on intelligence that was so weak that only a willing dupe could have bought into it. I long debated with my friends whether Bush II and the Neocons conspired to bamboozle America into invading Iraq. At first I leaned toward it being an intentional fraud. But then after watching Rumsfeld (probably the worst Secretary of Defense we've ever had) go from one spastic move to the next I became convinced that the whole Bush II team were ineffective and unimaginative petty bureacrats.
I mean, a thoroughly mediocre guy like Rumsfeld would have been beyond his competency level managing a chain of Burger Kings, and yet there he was trying to manage a large military adventure and getting our boys killed in the process.
Napolean said something to the effect that one should never ascribe evil intent when stupidity is an adequate explanation. That's why I no longer even entertain the notion that Bush II knew there was no WMD, for example. They were just incompetent fools.
And I voted for them.
I voted for Bush also. And I still look back on him fondly compared to the Anti-American Commie Muslim who rules the roost today.
But Bush made many mistakes. Number one being not connecting the importance of border security to national security.