The Administration "Re-Wronging" History
Published November 30, 2005
In 2003, Paul Wolfowitz, then deputy defense secretary, gave an interview to Vanity Fair's Sam Tannenhaus in which Wolfowitz was quoted as saying:
"For bureaucratic reasons we settled on one issue, weapons of mass destruction, because it was the one reason everyone could agree on."
A Pentagon transcript (as opposed to the reporter's transcription; this comes from USA Today) shows that Wolfowitz said:
"The truth is that for reasons that have a lot to do with the US government bureaucracy, we settled on the one issue that everyone could agree on, which was weapons of mass destruction as the core reason..."
Suspicions about motive began to rise at home and abroad, so the Pentagon attempted to "clarify" the statement. Supporting pundits and periodicals did as well. Should the argument arise that officials have been arguing this since 2003, well, that is an undeniable fact... as undeniable that the arguments began after the war started and was declared "Mission Accomplished." The lead-up to the war is a far different matter.
On May 28, 2003, the Pentagon, in an effort to stem criticism of Wolfowitz's statements, allowed an interview between Wolfowitz and Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post to "correct" the record. The following is an excerpt:
"DeYoung: OK, let me just... But do you think that you might have oversold the whole WMD thing last fall? With the sort of, not only do they have production facilities, they actually have weapons that are ready to be used?
Wolfowitz: I don't think so. I mean, I think we were working from, as I told you, one of the most widely shared intelligence assessments I know of.
DeYoung: And even if we end up not finding...?
Wolfowitz: We're a long way from...
Kevin Kellems, a Pentagon public affairs officer: We can't go there. Karen, come on! [Laughter] That was a trick question.
DeYoung: Oh, it was? I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to be.
Kellems: I was just kidding.
DeYoung: No, I didn't.
Wolfowitz: No, there was no oversell…
Trick question? Apparently, DeYoung didn't check her "empire's own reality" and "history's actors" handbook of allowed questions.
Thereafter, pundits and writers entered the debate to explain what Wolfowitz said.
On June 2, 2003, the National Review published "Vanity Unfair" by James S. Robbins. In part, he wrote:
"William Kristol's Weekly Standard article has all of the details, so I don't need to repeat them... There is something of a straw man being erected in the debate, namely the suggestion that Saddam's WMD arsenal was the only reason for the war. Certainly, it was the most highly debated issue. But was it the reason? No, and no one in the administration ever said that it was."
An interesting point is that Robbins' article (dated and titled online as "June 2, 2003 - Vanity Unfair WMDs controversies") refers to an article found online in the Weekly Standard as, "What Wolfowitz Really Said: The truth behind the Vanity Fair 'scoop'" by William Kristol (dated June 9, 2003) .
- The Administration "Re-Wronging" History
- Published: November 30, 2005
- Type: Opinion
- Section: Politics
- Writer: AmeriPundit
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Comments on this articleComments
This is the most despicable administration in US History. The filthiest, corrupt lying jackals to ever sit in DC and yet people still think these guys are just swell and are "protecting Merrika".
They are all war criminals. They have hurt the US so badly that it's beyond full repair. They're responsible for 9/11. They're responsible for the illegal wars of aggression in Afghanistan and Iraq. They're responsible for the continued selling out and hollowing out of America's middle class. They continue to allow millions of Third Worlders into America when we don't need them.
The Bush Adminstration is putting the final nails in America's coffin. Just wait and see. It's going to get worse and worse in this country.
Jeee-sus H. Christ! They don't even operate in "reality" - that's for the rest of us who live in the Real World. We're fucked.
"Just wait and see. It's going to get worse and worse in this country." - TommyD
Thanks for expressing your side's wishes in a clear, concise format.
ReTard, it's not my "my side's wishes" that thing's get worse in this country, it's just the realistic and logical outcome of a government gone really, really bad. Anyone one with the gift of free thought can see that the US's current policies can not, and will not, end in a good or beneficial way for the vast majority of American citizens. Empires never end well, but always with great and swift collapse.
But I guess you'll turn on FOX News tonight and believe whatever they tell you, so I might be wasting my time here.
Why is it so hard for people to see the truth of what's happening in this country and why it needs to change now!?!?!
Redtard & his ilk are members of a hard-core decreasing minority, as even the half-wits who voted for Bush in 04 are waking up & smelling the stench of corruption on The Hill & in the WH.
Nancy, you're right. The cheerleaders for war are so desperate to retain a little bit of their self-dignity after being so utterly defeated by the reality of America's illegal Iraq invasion that they're just lashing out at anyone who speaks up about the awful reality that this nation finds itself in because of following the insane delusions of grandeur by insane politicians.
Nancy, they're weak. They thought that they could boost their faux machismo by cheerleading the US military into "killing all dem Ay-rabs" when these guys know in their heart of hearts that they could never muster the bravery to actually put the rubber to the road and hook up with the front lines in Iraq.
It's all psychological with these guys. Shattered they all are.
I'm no cheerleader or chickenhawk, I was a member of the US armed forces and have been to Kuwait. I risked my life to disarm leftover Iraqi and US munitions so that little kids could play outside without fear of blowing themselves up.
I've been there and I know people very well who are over there now. They tell a different story than what you guys spew. I have to take personal experience and eyewitness accounts over propaganda from radicals angry because they lost in the last election.
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"There can be no doubt that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction." Dick Cheney
"Saddam has chemical weapons." Colin Powell
"Saddam has biological weapons." G. W. Bush
"We know he has these weapons and we know where they are." Donald Rumsfeld.
"He tried to obtain uranium from Africa." G.W. Bush
"Would I lie to you? Would I lie to you honey? Would I say something that wasn't true." Annie Lenox