Posted on 07/22/2003 8:31:11 PM PDT by ejdrapes
KING: President, maybe I can get an area where you may disagree. Do you join, President Clinton, your fellow Democrats, in complaining about the portion of the State of the Union address that dealt with nuclear weaponry in Africa? CLINTON: Well, I have a little different take on it, I think, than either side. First of all, the White House said -- Mr. Fleischer said -- that on balance they probably shouldn't have put that comment in the speech. What happened, often happens. There was a disagreement between British intelligence and American intelligence. The president said it was British intelligence that said it. And then they said, well, maybe they shouldn't have put it in. Let me tell you what I know. When I left office, there was a substantial amount of biological and chemical material unaccounted for. That is, at the end of the first Gulf War, we knew what he had. We knew what was destroyed in all the inspection processes and that was a lot. And then we bombed with the British for four days in 1998. We might have gotten it all; we might have gotten half of it; we might have gotten none of it. But we didn't know. So I thought it was prudent for the president to go to the U.N. and for the U.N. to say you got to let these inspectors in, and this time if you don't cooperate the penalty could be regime change, not just continued sanctions. I mean, we're all more sensitive to any possible stocks of chemical and biological weapons. So there's a difference between British -- British intelligence still maintains that they think the nuclear story was true. I don't know what was true, what was false. I thought the White House did the right thing in just saying, Well, we probably shouldn't have said that. And I think we ought to focus on where we are and what the right thing to do for Iraq is now. That's what I think. KING: So do you share that view, Senator Dole? DOLE: Oh, he's exactly right. Let's put the focus where it belongs. I never got to be president. I tried a couple of times. But President Clinton understands better than anybody that he gets piles and piles of classified, secret, top secret information, and I don't know how many, maybe the president can tell me. I don't know how much of this goes across your desk every day. It probably shouldn't have been in the message. But that's history. It's passed. We can't change it. And we need to focus on the real problem. KING: What do you do, Mr. President, with what's put in front of you? CLINTON: Well, here's what happens: every day the president gets a daily brief from the CIA. And then, if it's some important issue -- and believe me, you know, anything having to do with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons became much more important to everybody in the White House after September the 11 -- then they probably told the president, certainly Condoleezza Rice, that this is what the British intelligence thought. They maybe have a difference of opinion, but on balance, they decided they should leave that line in the speech. I think the main thing I want to say to you is, people can quarrel with whether we should have more troops in Afghanistan or internationalize Iraq or whatever, but it is incontestable that on the day I left office, there were unaccounted for stocks... DOLE: That's right. CLINTON: ... of biological and chemical weapons. We might have destroyed them in '98. We tried to, but we sure as heck didn't know it because we never got to go back in there. KING: Yes. CLINTON: And what I think -- again, I would say the most important thing is we should focus on what's the best way to build Iraq as a democracy? How is the president going to do that and deal with continuing problems in Afghanistan and North Korea? We should be pulling for America on this. We should be pulling for the people of Iraq. We can have honest disagreements about where we go from here, and we have space now to discuss that in what I hope will be a nonpartisan and open way. But this State of the Union deal they decided to use the British intelligence. The president said it was British intelligence. Then they said on balance they shouldn't have done it. You know, everybody makes mistakes when they are president. I mean, you can't make as many calls as you have to make without messing up once in awhile. The thing we ought to be focused on is what is the right thing to do now. That's what I think.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
1)SlickWilly just wants in on some of the action and praise that W is getting. This is nothing more than Bill(I worship myself)Clinton getting his name in the headlines. If he was running against President Bush, Slick would be making Dean, Kerry, Edwards,etc sound like girl scouts in attacking W. The spin machine would be going wall to wall in attacks on President Bush. Don't let Slick fool you for one minute that he is standing up for Bush. Just go back and look at how Slick was bashing W last month Vs what he said today.
2)Slick is doing a CHA(CoveringHerA$$) for Hillary's yes vote on the war so she will be able to run 2004 without having to answer to her critics on the war question. Bill is just doing what he has always done. Put the bad news out there first then later on you don't have to deal with it. I'm sure that Hillary will hold a press conference this week saying she stands by her decision on the war but disagrees with W blah, blah, blah. While all the other canidates are running left this leaves Hillary to looking like a "middle of the road" canidate like Bill pretended to be in 92.
Look at Slick's words."You know, everybody makes mistakes when they are president. I mean, you can't make as many calls as you have to make without messing up once in awhile. The thing we ought to be focused on is what is the right thing to do now. That's what I think." "I would say the most important thing is we should focus on what's the best way to build Iraq as a democracy"
Slick(LYING)Willy is equating his presidency with Bush's presidency. Notice the use of the word "we" in several sentences. Anyother time it would be Bill Clinton(I) or (ME) did this. In other words George W. Bush is no different than him. He is saying Bush made mistakes that are no worst than what he did. In a Bill Clinton voice hear him saying "Hey look W lies, I lied what the big deal. We just a couple of good ole boys trying to run a country. Like that bombing of a aspirin factory to cover that Monica thing. Why people got so worked up over that I'll never understand. I'm sure W would agree. Ain't that right W? You know we presidents, we got to stain together. I mean stick together. Well not like that sticky stuff on that blue dress but but you get my drift. Shazam did I say stick together. Where is Carville? Who's writting my talking points here lately. Fire that man or person. (Note to self: Remember to more PC for the cameras and do not talk about sticking anything.)"
This is classic Slick. SlickWilly is trying to rehabilitate his image at the expense of President Bush.
CLINTON: "Well, here's what happens: every day the president gets a daily brief from the CIA. And then, if it's some important issue -- and believe me, you know, anything having to do with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons became much more important to everybody in the White House after September the 11th".
First Off, I can't believe (knowing what we know now)that L.K. could ask that question of Billy with a straight face.We know he didn't meet w/ the head of the FBI OR CIA for nearly 2-3 years. He didn't care about Terrorism and refused to take appropriate action for 8 years.He's really getting in on the "You know's" now, isn't he?
CLINTON"You know, everybody makes mistakes when they are president"
Ohhhhh Dogbarf and full-on Gack!!! I shudder to think how long he's been waiting to utter those words on National TV.The fact that he's trying to make some moral equivalence to his traitorous actions against the USA and every other President is disgusting.The point being, no other President wanted to be POTUS ONLY because of the "POWER",Billy Jeff-----That undeniable damning reality resides with you and will be written about in your biographies and will roll through the ether, online forever!
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