When the Bush Administration was coining the term ‘axis of evil’ in January 2002–which included Iraq, North Korea, and Iran–“the extent of Iran’s nuclear ambitions wasn’t fully documented–it would not be until August 2002 that Iranian dissidents would blow the whistle about two nuclear power plants in Arak and Natanz, in central Iran–and the country […]
Category: quotes
8/15/2002
In August 2002, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice “created an inter-agency group of people from State, the CIA, the Joint Chiefs, and the White House who were charged with coordinating the government’s preparations leading up to the invasion [of Iraq], including securing bases in the region and getting overflight permission from other countries. The body […]
8/15/2002
Former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft wrote an op-ed for the August 15, 2002, Wall Street Journal titled ‘Don’t Attack Saddam.’ ” ‘There is scant evidence to tie Saddam to terrorist organizations,’ he wrote, ‘and even less to the Sept. 11 attacks.’ To attack Iraq, while ignoring the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he said, ‘could turn the […]
8/14/2002
According to an August 14, 2002, article in The Los Angeles Times: “…in August [2002], [Attorney General John] Ashcroft disclosed a plan that ‘would allow him to order the indefinite incarceration of U.S. citizens and summarily strip them of their constitutional rights and access to the courts by declaring them enemy combatants.’ ” – Peter […]
8/14/2002
“In mid-August [14] 2002, top Bush administration officials drafted a top secret document for the president to sign, laying out the goal of the [Iraq] war. Blandly titled ‘Iraq: Goals, Objectives and Strategy,’ the document outlined the broad goals for a military operation. It asserted that a free Iraq would eliminate the threat of WMD, […]
8/14/2002
On August 14, 2002, National Security Advisor Condoleezza “Rice chaired a principals meeting in Washington. The group approved for the president’s [Bush’s] signature a top secret document, entitled ‘Iraq: Goals, Objectives and Strategy,’ which laid out broad goals for a military operation that sought both to win a war and to transform a nation. The […]
8/14/2002
In a revised paper titled ‘Iraq: Goals, Objectives, Strategy’ that she circulated to the Principals, (the members of the National Security Council other than President Bush), on August 14, 2002, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice stated: ” ‘Free Iraq in order to: *Eliminate Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD), their means of delivery and associate […]
8/13/2002
Former CIA Director George Tenet discussed a paper the CIA published regarding possible consequences of the Iraq war: “Dated August 13, 2002, it was titled, ‘The Perfect Storm: Planning for Negative Consequences of Invading Iraq.’ The paper provided worst-case scenarios that might emerge from a U.S.-led regime-change effort. The summary said that following an invasion: […]
8/10/2002
On August 10, 2002, “Germany’s [Chancellor] Gerhard Schroeder pledges flatly that ‘Germany will not participate’ in U.S.-led military action against Iraq because ‘we need more peace, not more war.’ ” – Lawrence F. Kaplan and William Kristol, The War Over Iraq, Page 89 […]
8/10/2002
President George W. Bush, when asked if the American people are prepared for the casualties of war: “Well, I think that that presumes there’s some kind of imminent war plan. As I said, I have no timetable. What I do believe the American people understand is that weapons of mass destruction in the hands of leaders […]