Peggy Noonan Gets Owned
MATTHEWS: No, no. The particular question here is, why do the majority of the people still believe that Saddam Hussein attacked us 9/11 and, therefore, believe the world is safer because he is gone?
NOONAN: Chris, take a look at what that poll says. It doesn't say they are certain Saddam Hussein did 9/11. They think Osama...
MATTHEWS: No, they say he personally was involved.
NOONAN: They think Osama bin Laden did 9/11. They also think the world is a complicated place. And they think that Saddam...
MATTHEWS: No, no, Peggy, you are not listening. You are not listening.
NOONAN: I am listening.
MATTHEWS: No.
NOONAN: They think that Saddam Hussein was helpful to international bad guys and the world's bad guys.
MATTHEWS: No. They say he was personally involved in blowing up the World Trade Center, personally involved. Do you believe he was personally involved?
NOONAN: Do I think he did it?
MATTHEWS: Yes. No, was personally involved in it.
NOONAN: Do I think he was on the plane? Do I think he pulled the levers that Osama bin Laden did?
MATTHEWS: No, do you believe he was personally...
NOONAN: No.
Do I suspect that he was helpful to our enemies and helpful to terrorism, looking to hurt us? Yes.
MATTHEWS: But do you think he was personally involved in blowing up the World Trade Center, Saddam Hussein? That is the critical question here, because it involves whether we're safe or not.
(CROSSTALK)
NOONAN: Chris...
MATTHEWS: Do you believe he was personally involved?
NOONAN: Chris, I don't think it can be asked as a crystal question.
First of all, I think a lot will come out and be revealed in time and a lot will be studied that we already know. It seems to me that Saddam Hussein was a guy who was extremely helpful to our enemies, our foes, our opponents, terrorism, etcetera. He was friends with those guys. We will see. There was a report just last week.
MATTHEWS: Why are you having a hard time with a question of fact here? Lawrence made a very clear statement. He said there is no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in 9/11. Is Lawrence correct?
NOONAN: Lawrence made a clear statement that he doesn't believe that Saddam Hussein had any part, correct?
MATTHEWS: What do you believe?
NOONAN: In 9/11?
O'DONNELL: No, no, Peggy. I didn't say that.
(CROSSTALK)
NOONAN: All right. What did you say, Lawrence?
O'DONNELL: I said-and this is quite simple.
NOONAN: Oh.
O'DONNELL: There is absolutely no evidence of it. I do not have a religious belief one way or the other. I know, scientifically, evidentiary, there is no evidence for it.
MATTHEWS: Do you challenge that, Peggy? Do you have any evidence?
NOONAN: I'm sure there is evidence that he has been helpful to bad guys who have tried to hurt us and who in fact have hurt us in the past.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Peggy, you can't handle this question, because it gets to the heart of why we went to war. You can't handle the truth.
