Wednesday, July 16, 2003


Clinton On the Half-Shell
You can teach a new dog old tricks
Tim Cavanaugh

Right now, we know the following: The CIA is to blame for the famous sixteen-word phrase in President Bush's State of the Union address regarding Iraqi efforts to buy uranium in Niger; the CIA also tried to get the Niger reference removed from the president's speech. The United Kingdom, which provided the support for the Niger claims, remains convinced of their truth; also, British foreign secretary Jack Straw says the claims were based on forged documents. The White House wishes us to keep in mind that the Niger allegation remains reliable; however, since the Niger claim was unreliable, it should not have been included in the speech. Former ambassador Joseph Wilson provided support for the Niger claim in the fall of 2002, even though Wilson also says the claim was "exaggerated". But anyway, why are we making such a ludicrous fuss about the Niger story in the first place? Four months after the official end of hostilities in Iraq, no evidence has been found that Iraqi weapons of mass destruction posed a threat to the United States; that's why people pointing this out have to go out and find that evidence themselves. ...