“[I]n May 2005, the ‘Downing Street Memo‘ was reported in The Sunday Times [London]. The leaked memo from July [23] 2002 detailed a briefing to [British Prime Minister Tony] Blair by a British intelligence official, just back from America, simply known as ‘C.’ …The 2002 memo read: ‘C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. [President] Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. The NSC [National Security Council] had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime’s record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action.” [The 15th of the month used for date sorting purposes only.]
– Ron Suskind, The Way of the World, Pages 188-189