Sanity
Posts: 22039
Joined: 6/14/2006
From: Nampa, Idaho USA
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quote:
ORIGINAL: DomKen
Yeah, shocking how no one on the left believed a President would just make shit up to convince us to go to war. Got to credit Bush with bringing a level of disrepute to the office never before achieved.
"Shocking" a President would just make shit up... 
quote:
Transcript President Clinton explains Iraq strike
 Earlier today, I ordered Americas armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces. Their mission is to attack Iraqs nuclear,chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors.
Their purpose is to protect the national interest of the United States, and indeed the interests of people throughout the Middle East and around the world.
Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biologicalweapons.
I want to explain why I have decided, with the unanimous recommendation of my national security team, to use force in Iraq; why we have acted now; and what we aim to accomplish.
Six weeks ago, Saddam Hussein announced that he would no onger cooperate with the United Nations weapons inspectors called UNSCOM. They are highly professional experts from dozens of countries. Their job is to oversee the elimination of Iraqs capability to retain, create and use weapons of mass destruction, and to verify that Iraq does not attempt to rebuild that capability.
The inspectors undertook this mission first 7.5 years ago atthe end of the Gulf War when Iraq agreed to declare and destroyits arsenal as a condition of the ceasefire.
The international community had good reason to set this requirement. Other countries possess weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles. With Saddam, there is onebig difference He has used them. Not once, but repeatedly.Unleashing chemical weapons against Iranian troops during a decade long war. Not only against soldiers, but against civilians, firing Scud missiles at the citizens of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iran. And not only against a foreign enemy,but even against his own people, gassing Kurdish civilians in Northern Iraq.
The international community had little doubt then, and I have no doubt today, that left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will use these terrible weapons again.
The United States has patiently worked to preserve UNSCOM asIraq has sought to avoid its obligation to cooperate with theinspectors. On occasion, weve had to threaten military force,and Saddam has backed down.
Faced with Saddams latest act of defiance in late October,we built intensive diplomatic pressure on Iraq backed by overwhelming military force in the region. The UN Security Council voted 15 to zero to condemn Saddams actions and to demand that he immediately come into compliance.
Eight Arab nations Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia,Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Oman warned that Iraq alone would bear responsibility for the consequences of defying the UN.When Saddam still failed to comply, we prepared to act militarily. It was only then at the last possible moment that Iraq backed down. It pledged to the UN that it had made, and I quote, a clear and unconditional decision to resume cooperation with the weapons inspectors.
I decided then to call off the attack with our airplanesalready in the air because Saddam had given in to our demands.I concluded then that the right thing to do was to use restraint and give Saddam one last chance to prove his willingness to cooperate.
I made it very clear at that time what unconditional cooperation meant, based on existing UN resolutions and Iraqs own commitments. And along with Prime Minister Blair of Great Britain, I made it equally clear that if Saddam failed to cooperate fully, we would be prepared to act without delay,diplomacy or warning.
Now over the past three weeks, the UN weapons inspectors have carried out their plan for testing Iraqs cooperation. The testing period ended this weekend, and last night, UNSCOMs chairman, Richard Butler, reported the results to UN Secretary General Annan.
The conclusions are stark, sobering and profoundly disturbing.
In four out of the five categories set forth, Iraq has failedto cooperate. Indeed, it actually has placed new restrictionson the inspectors. Here are some of the particulars.
Iraq repeatedly blocked UNSCOM from inspecting suspect sites.For example, it shut off access to the headquarters of itsruling party and said it will deny access to the partys other offices, even though UN resolutions make no exception for them and UNSCOM has inspected them in the past.Iraq repeatedly restricted UNSCOMs ability to obtain necessary evidence. For example, Iraq obstructed UNSCOMs effort to photograph bombs related to its chemical weapons program.It tried to stop an UNSCOM biological weapons team fromvideotaping a site and photocopying documents and preventedIraqi personnel from answering UNSCOMs questions.
Prior to the inspection of another site, Iraqactually emptied out the building, removing not just documentsbut even the furniture and the equipment.
Iraq has failed to turn over virtually all the documents requested by the inspectors. Indeed, we know that Iraq ordered the destruction of weapons related documents in anticipation of an UNSCOM inspection.
So Iraq has abused its final chance.
As the UNSCOM reports concludes, and again I quote, Iraqsconduct ensured that no progress was able to be made in the fields of disarmament.
In light of this experience, and in the absence of fullcooperation by Iraq, it must regrettably be recorded again thatthe commission is not able to conduct the work mandated to it bythe Security Council with respect to Iraqs prohibited weaponsprogram.
In short, the inspectors are saying that even if they couldstay in Iraq, their work would be a sham.Saddams deception has defeated theireffectiveness. Instead of the inspectors disarming Saddam,Saddam has disarmed the inspectors.
This situation presents a clear and present danger to the stability of the Persian Gulf and the safety of people everywhere. The international community gave Saddam one last chance to resume cooperation with the weapons inspectors.Saddam has failed to seize the chance.And so we had to act and act now.
Let me explain why.
First, without a strong inspection system, Iraq would be free to retain and begin to rebuild its chemical, biological and nuclear weapons programs in months, not years.
Second, if Saddam can crippled the weapons inspection system and get away with it, he would conclude that the international community led by the United States has simply lost its will. He will surmise that he has free rein to rebuild his arsenal of destruction, and someday make no mistake hewill use it again as he has in the past.
Third, in halting our air strikes in November, I gave Saddam a chance, not a license. If we turn our backs on his defiance,the credibility of U.S. power as a check against Saddam will be destroyed. We will not only have allowed Saddam to shatter the inspection system that controls his weapons of mass destruction program; we also will have fatally undercut the fear of force that stops Saddam from acting to gain domination in the region.
That is why, on the unanimous recommendation of my national security team including the vice president, the secretary of defense, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, the secretary of state and the national security adviser I have ordered a strong, sustained series of air strikes against Iraq.
They are designed to degrade Saddams capacity to develop and deliver weapons of mass destruction, and to degrade his ability to threaten his neighbors.
At the same time, we are delivering a powerful message to Saddam. If you act recklessly, you will pay a heavy price. We acted today because, in the judgment of my military advisers, a swift response would provide the most surprise and the least opportunity for Saddam to prepare.
If we had delayed for even a matter of days from Chairman Butlers report, we would have given Saddam more time to disperse his forces and protect his weapons.
Also, the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins this weekend.For us to initiate military action during Ramadan would be profoundly offensive to the Muslim world and, therefore, would damage our relations with Arab countries and the progress we have made in the Middle East.
That is something we wanted very much to avoid without giving Iraqs a months head start to prepare for potential action against it.Finally, our allies, including Prime Minister Tony Blair of Great Britain, concurred that now is the time to strike. I hope Saddam will come into cooperation with the inspection system now and comply with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.But we have to be prepared that he will not, and we must deal with the very real danger he poses.
So we will pursue a long term strategy to contain Iraq and its weapons of mass destruction and work toward the day when Iraq has a government worthy of its people.
First, we must be prepared to use force again if Saddam takes threatening actions, such as trying to reconstitute his weapons of mass destruction or their delivery systems, threatening his neighbors, challenging allied aircraft over Iraq or moving against his own Kurdish citizens.
The credible threat to use force, and when necessary, theactual use of force, is the surest way to contain Saddamsweapons of mass destruction program, curtail his aggression andprevent another Gulf War.
Second, so long as Iraq remains out of compliance, we will work with the international community to maintain and enforce economic sanctions. Sanctions have cost Saddam more than 120billion resources that would have been used to rebuild his military. The sanctions system allows Iraq to sell oil for food, for medicine, for other humanitarian supplies for the Iraqi people.
We have no quarrel with them. But without the sanctions, we would see the oil for food program become oil for tanks, resulting in a greater threat to Iraqs neighbors and less food for its people.
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Inside Every Liberal Is A Totalitarian Screaming To Get Out
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