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"Disarm Saddam Hussein" Deconstructed
On January 28, 2003 the White House published a convenient summary of their case for war. It was posted on the White House website 4/18/03 at http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/nationalsecurity/disarm.html
I have copied the document below. My commentary is in red.
Disarm Saddam Hussein
The gravest danger we face in the war on terror is outlaw regimes that seek and possess nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.
- Twelve years ago, Saddam Hussein agreed to disarm all weapons of mass destruction. For 12 years, he systematically violated that agreement.
Bush accused Saddam of lying when Saddam said he had no WMD. It turns out that Saddam was telling the truth and Bush was lying. - Three months ago, the United Nations Security Council gave Saddam his final chance to disarm. He has shown his utter contempt for the U.N.
Hans Blix, the UN inspector, said Baghdad had cooperated "substantially". He also said "I'm certainly more and more to the conclusion that Iraq has, as they maintained, destroyed almost all of what they had in the summer of 1991," [GlobalPolicy] - The U.N. and U.S. intelligence sources have known for some time that Saddam Hussein has materials to produce chemical and biological weapons, but he has not accounted for them:
The US knew he had those materials because the US helped Iraq obtain those materials back in the 1980's. But those materials were used up, destroyed or became degraded long ago. See Iraq History page and a picture of Rumsfeld shaking Saddam's hand. - 26,000 liters of anthrax—enough to kill several million people
- 38,000 liters of botulinum toxin
- 500 tons of sarin, mustard and VX nerve agents
- Almost 30,000 munitions capable of delivering chemical agents
What chemical agents? Artillery shells without the WMD are just artillery shells. - From three Iraqi defectors, we know that Iraq in the late 1990s had several mobile biological weapons labs. But he has not disclosed them.
These claims originated from Curveball, a discredited Iraqi informer who fed Bush much of the stories related to WMD. On May 29, 2003, two small trailers matching the description were found in Iraq. For over a year, Bush claimed these were part of Iraq's bio-weapons program. But a team of bio-weapons experts examined the trailers and concluded they were simply designed to produce hydrogen for weather balloons. Their report was suppressed and only recently made public. [WashPost] - The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed in the 1990s that Saddam Hussein had an advanced nuclear weapons development program, a design for a nuclear weapon, and was working on methods of enriching uranium for a nuclear bomb. He recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa, according to the British Government. He has attempted to purchase high strength aluminum tubes suitable for nuclear weapons, according to our intelligence sources. Yet he has not credibly explained these activities.
There was no nuclear weapons program. Bush was informed several times in 2002 that the story about the Uranium from Niger and the aluminum tubes were bogus. - Thousands of Iraqi security personnel are at work hiding documents and materials from the UN inspectors.
Hans Blix disagreed and said the inspectors had reported no such incidents. [GlobalPolicy] - Iraqi officials accompany all inspectors in order to intimidate witnesses.
- Iraq is blocking U-2 surveillance flights requested by the U.N.
True on 1/28/03. But Saddam started allowing U-2 flights over Iraq Feb 10, 2003, more than a month before the war started. http://www.globalpolicy.org/security/issues/iraq/unmovic/2003/0210approves.htm - Saddam Hussein has ordered that scientists who cooperate with the UN be killed, along with their families.
- Saddam Hussein aids and protects terrorists, including al-Qaida members. He could provide hidden weapons to terrorists, or help them develop their own. It would take just one vial, one canister, one crate slipped into this country to bring a day of horror like none we have ever known.
Prety scary. But Bush knew there were no ties between Iraq and al Qaeda. Al Qaeda was opposed to Saddam Hussein because Saddam led a secular government instead of an Islamic government. Bush has repeatedly tried to tie Iraq with 9/11 and al Qaeda but there simply was no connection. [ZNet] [CNN]
The United States will ask the UN Security Council to convene next week to consider the facts of Iraq’s ongoing defiance of the world. We will consult. But if Saddam Hussein does not disarm, we will act for the safety of our people, and for the peace of the world. and for the oil...
