“On December 13, 2003, in a moment of misplaced bravado, [Coalition Provisional Authority leader] Ambassador L. Paul Bremer III famously crowed at a press conference, ‘We got him!’ Saddam Hussein was finally captured in an intensive hunt by U.S. Special Forces that began with the invasion nine months earlier. He had been literally holed up […]
Category: quotes
12/12/2003
“Defending his decision to maintain Iraq as an exclusive preserve for U.S.-based multinational corporations [as recounted in the December 12, 2003, edition of The Washington Post], [President] Bush explained why the victor is entitled to the spoils of war. ‘It’s very simple,’ he said. ‘Our people risked their lives…and therefore the contracting is going to […]
12/12/2003
According to a New York Times article on December 12, 2003, Halliburton: “The multinational defense and logistics contractor…was awarded a $15.6 billion no-bid contract after the Iraq invasion, for which [Vice President Dick] Cheney had been one of the leading advocates.” – Peter Lance, Cover Up, Page 252 […]
12/11/2003
On December 11, 2003, Department of Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge raised the threat level to orange. ” ‘The U.S. intelligence community has received a substantial increase in the volume of threat-related intelligence reports. These credible sources suggest the possibility of attacks against the homeland around the holiday season and beyond. The strategic indicators, including […]
12/9/2003
“Soon after the establishment of the Governing Council, a committee to look into the former regime’s crimes was formed under the Governing Council member and judge, Dara Nureddine, advised by [Future of Iraq Project member] Salem Chalabi. The Iraq Special Tribunal law was passed by the Governing Council on 9 December, 2003, in one of […]
12/9/2003
On December 9, 2003, “At the Pentagon, [Deputy Secretary of Defense] Paul Wolfowitz announces that companies from a number of countries that opposed the war in Iraq–including France, Germany and Russia–will be barred from bidding on reconstruction contracts in Iraq.” – Todd S. Purdum and The New York Times Staff, A Time of Our Choosing, […]
12/8/2003
“The worsening security situation had been highlighted by [Secretary-General of the UN] Kofi Annan as he spoke of the ‘risk of failure in Afghanistan’ for the first time. He told the UN Security Council on December 8 [2003] that ‘unchecked criminality, outbreaks of factional fighting and activities surrounding the illegal narcotics trade have all had […]
11/28/2003
“In reply to written questions from the Washington Post, [Grand Ayatollah Ali al-] Sistani rejected the idea of a caucus system to select the TNA [Transitional National Assembly]. [On November 28, 2003, Sistani wrote:] ‘The mechanism in place to choose members of the transitional legislative assembly does not guarantee the establishment of an assembly that […]
11/21/2003
In an interview with Salon.com on November 21, 2003, 9/11 Commissioner and former Senator Max Cleland (D-GA) said, regarding the lack of access by the White House to classified documents: ” ‘It should be a national scandal,’… ‘It’s been painfully obvious that the [Bush] administration not only fought the creation of the Commission but that […]
11/20/2003
On November 20, 2003, five days after their synagogue bombings in Istanbul, Turkey, the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades “struck the British Consulate and the London-based HSBC bank in Istanbul. …Twenty-seven people were killed and approximately 450 were injured. The bombings coincided with a visit by President Bush to London.” – Antonia Juhasz, The Bush Agenda, […]