Clark: Iraq war used to settle score

[Emillereid]

Thursday, November 06, 2003
By KEVIN LANDRIGAN, Telegraph Staff

CONCORD – The attack against Iraq had nothing to do with terrorism, but was the work of military leaders in the Bush administration with a long score to settle, retired Gen. Wesley Clark charged Wednesday.
<sniP>

“It is a world-class bait and switch,” Clark told reporters.

CBS News and The Philadelphia Daily News have reported Rumsfeld wrote a memo five hours after the terrorist attacks that ordered up intelligence on whether it could be used to “hit S.H.,’’ referring to Saddam.

“Go massive. Sweep it all up. Things related and not,” the memo said, according to those reports....,

http://nashuatelegraph.com/main.asp?SectionID=25&SubSectionID=354&ArticleID=92896

I'm really beginning to like this guy -- like Dean, he's right in their face about the neo-con's lies and schemes.

[DK666]

1. Finally....

Someone called them on it.... Let the news cycle begin.

[tedoll78]

2. Man, this guy is GOOD!

I'm uber-impressed!

[Military Brat]

3. "He tried to kill my daddy!" (george w. bush)

Of course there were old scores to settle. This was never about terrorism. If it were, we would have cleaned up Afghanistan first, captured Osama bush forgot'm, then moved on from there.

But, but, "He tried to kill my daddy!" http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/gallagher99.html

[xray s]

4. He needs to bring in the PNAC crowd too

Clark has made statements about Bush's plans to invade other ME countries. He needs to tie that into his "bait and switch" remarks.

Maybe he knows Americans can only digest so much at one time.

[Rowdyboy]

5. Lets get it all out there...

Clark is laying it out one issue at a time. Then he can tie them all together in a scorched earth campaign that will demolish the incompetent incumbent.

[TacticalPeek]

6. It doesn't get more pointed than that.

I doubt the R response can go much beyond the bluster in the article.

[Noordam]

7. OK Holy Joe your turn

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[davidinalameda]

8. duh!

another reason to like Clark--he tells it like it is

[FormerMarine6055]

29. No...

he tells it like he sees it.

Remember that he was pulled from Kosovo because he wasn't getting the job done.

And I don't think that he could get anything else done.

Heck, he was still a registered Independant when he decided to run on the Democratic ticket.

[Tuttle]

32. Source???

The record shows that Clark was a Repuke before changing parties for this run...

But where did you get the other tid-bit?

I can only think of one spot on the web that carry that sort of 'information'...

I'd have to agreed with others: he tells like it is -

Tut-tut

[FrenchieCat]

35. Can you show me that record?

The document I saw showed the registration box marked as Independent.

It's ok...no apologies required.

[Skwmom]

39. The Record shows Clark was non-partisan and

just tell the people in Kosovo he didn't finish the job. They'd cut you to the quick for trying to trash a man they deeply respect.

[FrenchieCat]

34. FormerMarine6055, You are dismissed!

GoodBye!


"IT'S YOUR ECONOMY AND YOUR WAR, STUPID!"
A REAL MILITARY HERO TELLS A GENUINE INTELLIGENCE FAILURE

[FormerMarine6055]

36. What?

Didn't I say that Clarke was registered as an Independant when he decided to run?

Why, yes, I did...And you confirmed it.

[greatauntoftriplets]

9. Gen. Clark said a mouthful.

Keep it up!

[Scott Lee]

10. Clark has a real knack for stating the obvious.

Yawwwwn...........

[Justice]

15. Guess It is not sooo obvious...

Read Post #11.

[sendero]

23. The obvious...

... that few people in a positition to get any coverage will say, and that only a fraction of Americans know.

[MidwestTransplant]

11. When was this reported???

"CBS News and The Philadelphia Daily News have reported Rumsfeld wrote a memo five hours after the terrorist attacks that ordered up intelligence on whether it could be used to “hit S.H.,’’ referring to Saddam."


When was this reported?

[TacticalPeek]

12. Last year, IIRC. And I've wondered who might be the source?

:shrug:

[UpInArms]

14. here is the CBS news link for that

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/09/04/september11/main520830.shtml

Plans For Iraq Attack Began On 9/11

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4, 2002

(CBS) CBS News has learned that barely five hours after American Airlines Flight 77 plowed into the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was telling his aides to come up with plans for striking Iraq — even though there was no evidence linking Saddam Hussein to the attacks.

That's according to notes taken by aides who were with Rumsfeld in the National Military Command Center on Sept. 11 – notes that show exactly where the road toward war with Iraq began, reports CBS News National Security Correspondent David Martin.

<snip>

With the intelligence all pointing toward bin Laden, Rumsfeld ordered the military to begin working on strike plans. And at 2:40 p.m., the notes quote Rumsfeld as saying he wanted "best info fast. Judge whether good enough hit S.H." – meaning Saddam Hussein – "at same time. Not only UBL" – the initials used to identify Osama bin Laden.

Now, nearly one year later, there is still very little evidence Iraq was involved in the Sept. 11 attacks. But if these notes are accurate, that didn't matter to Rumsfeld.

"Go massive," the notes quote him as saying. "Sweep it all up. Things related and not."

[robbedvoter]

13. Interesting choice of words from the GOP-er:

"Republican State Committee spokeswoman Julie Teer said this is another example of Clark’s bid to peel away from the anti-war base in the Democratic Party "
Who is she worrying about? Kuchinich? :shrug:

[Voltaire99]

16. Go, Clark!

This is the way to win - hammer, hammer, hammer.

I disliked Clark's entrance into the race - I still want the military kept out of our politics - but he is making the right moves and saying the right things.

Mercilessness toward Bush and Republican orthodoxies is the only way the Dems will have a prayer in 04.

[UpInArms]

17. must read this article - link here

http://www.canada.com/news/world/story.asp?id=4F553D06-75AD-45FE-8840-7D4520EEF6D1

Administration officials did admit, however, that a top Defence Department adviser had received an offer from Iraq through Lebanese- American businessman Imad Hage just days before the U.S.-led coalition invaded.

Iraqis wanted Americans to know they did not have weapons of mass destruction and would allow U.S. troops and experts to conduct an independent search, Pentagon officials said. Iraq also offered to hand over a man accused of being involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing who was being held in Baghdad.

But U.S. officials said Thursday the overtures weren't legitimate and couldn't have prevented war.

"The regime of Saddam Hussein had ample - well beyond ample - opportunity to avoid war," Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told a Pentagon news conference.

And White House spokesman Scott McClellan said he saw no reason to raise the issue.

"We exhausted every legitimate and credible opportunity to avert military action and to achieve a peaceful solution to this," he told a briefing.

"Saddam Hussein's unwillingness and his failure to comply after 12 years and some 17 Security Council resolutions from the United Nations, including one final opportunity, was the reason that the coalition was forced to act," said McClellan, who emphasized that Saddam was given 48 hours to leave the country and chose to stay.

McClellan would not say whether Bush knew about the offer, made to top adviser Richard Perle, who reportedly consulted the CIA.

these things that have gained power in our country are evil - disgusting cancerous growths upon our very lives.

:nuke:

[Nancy Waterman]

30. The big irony is

they say he didn't follow the Security Council resolutions because he was hiding WMD, but he wasn't. He was telling the truth!! So he wasn't breaking any resolutions when we went in.

[UpInArms]

33. remember the Salem witch trials

where they would drown the witches -

saying if they managed to float that it proved they were witches and if they sunk and drown (and thus - died) they were innocent?

[sujan]

18. blah blah blah

[brucelee]

19. why then killing innocent civillians for what?

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

20. kick

[Noordam]

21. :kick:

:kick:

[xultar]

22. GO!! CLARK GO!! He's hot!

[tabasco]

24. 8 Years With President Clark ...

followed by 8 years with President Edwards and maybe we can clean up this goddam mess.

[Guaranteed]

25. Wow...

It's raining memo's....hallelujah....:party:

[0007]

26. I like Clark on some days and other days I think he's junior's plant!

I don't understand this statement that was in the article could someone enlighten me?

Republican State Committee spokeswoman Julie Teer said this is another example of Clark’s bid to peel away from the anti-war base in the Democratic Party

“It’s another week and another whopper from Wesley Clark,” Teer said.

[Skwmom]

40. It's pretty simple.

1. The GOP wants the Flim Flam man because Bush will win in a landslike.
2. Therefore she dissess Clark for trying to take away the anti-war vote from the ff man. Though ff is on record stating at least 9 times that he would act unilaterally against Iraq.

[DrBB]

27. One of the great non-sequiturs in US foreign policy history

As if, after Pearl Harbor, we went off and attacked Laos. Hey, they're both in Asia, ain't they? Damn liberals all hung up on the details, don't see the big picture.

[sidpleasant]

28. I love your analogy, Doc

Even Trent Lott could understand it.

[9215]

31. Damn, Clark must really know something

to stick his neck out like this. The public (70% according to polls) still think Hussein did 9/11.

[Walt Starr]

37. This is one of the reaons I'm pro-Dean one day and pro-Clark the next

I'll accept either of them.

My heart is with Al Sharpton. My head says only Clark or Dean can do the job of defeating Bush.

If I thought the fight would be fair, I'd be a Sharpton supporter today. Only somebody like Dean or Clark will do the job with the deck stacked so badly against the Dems.

[CreekDog]

38. Clark Can Say It and Say It Plain!

Clark's got some talent at making policy points in plain English. He's a little rough around the edges (this is his first time running so that's to be expected). But he can boil down a complicated point into plain, and somewhat populist English. That was Clinton's talent!

Dean's got some of that too. We have a few months to judge who will be the better of the two. I think Clark has the best chance to say how we will leave Iraq responsibly (not just create another Afghanistan by cutting and runing completely --a la Kucinich).