The US intelligence community has taken a u-turn with it's new
NIE report on Iran, cloncluding with “high confidence” that “in fall 2003,Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program.”
"The report was completed more then a year ago but was held up for more than a year in an effort to force the intelligence community to remove dissenting judgments on the Iranian nuclear programme, and thus make the document more supportive of U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney’s militarily aggressive policy toward Iran.
Senior administration officials were briefed by intelligence officials beginning in July, but the
Bush claims that he was left in the dark until last Tuesday.
“So I’ve told people that if you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them from have the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon. I take the threat of Iran with a nuclear weapon very seriously.”
[Bush,
10/17/07]
“Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions. … The Iranian regime needs to know that if it stays on its present course the international community is prepared to impose serious consequences.”
[Cheney,
10/21/07]
“The problem is Iran, and Iran has not stepped back from trying to pursue a nuclear weapon, and — or reprocessing and enriching uranium, which would lead to a nuclear weapon.”
[White House spokeswoman Dana Perino,
10/26/07]
“We talked about Iran and the desire to work jointly to convince the Iranian regime to give up their nuclear weapons ambitions, for the sake of peace.”
[Bush,
11/7/07]
“We’re in a position now, clearly, especially when we look at Iran, where it’s very, very important we succeed in our efforts, our national security efforts, to discourage the Iranians from enriching uranium and producing nuclear weapons.”
[Cheney,
11/9/07]
“We are convinced that they are developing nuclear weapons.” [Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman,
11/13/07]
Neoconservative warhawks, what have been pushing for war with Iran have began to attack the NIE and the intelligence community claiming anti-bush sentiments, Norman Podhoretz:
"But I entertain an even darker suspicion. It is that the intelligence community, which has for some years now been leaking material calculated to undermine George W. Bush, is doing it again. This time the purpose is to head off the possibility that the President may order air strikes on the Iranian nuclear installations."
John Bolton believes a congressional witch-hunt should take place:
"I really think the House and Senate Intelligence Committees have to look at how this NIE was put together because there are a lot unexplained points in here. […]
I think there is a risk here, and I raise this as a question, whether people in the intelligence community who had their own agenda on Iran for some time now have politicized this intelligence and politicized these judgments in a way contrary to where the administration was going. I think somebody needs to look at that. "
This Information was culled from ThinkProgress.org, check thier coverage of the administration with regards to Iran at
http://thinkprogress.org/?tag=Iranhttp://www.videosift.com/video/US-Intelligence-U-Turn-on-Iran-acquiring-Nuclear-Weapons
12 Comments
HaricotVertThe man is flat-out delusional. There's no other word for it. Complete disregard for factual, researched information.
"Oh yeah, I read the report, and it says that they're aren't doing it now... BUT THEY STILL HAVE THE CAPABILITY. SANCTION THEM ANYWAYS."
Unbelievable. What new lows will he stoop to next?
wazantcough...cough...cough...cough...douchebag!...cough...cough...cough...
Farhad2000It just proves that with the Bush administration it's best to assume that anything they say is a lie until proven otherwise through facts by at least 5 or 6 other sources. In fact it's best to assume that the situation is the exact opposite of what they state.
The man is unbelievable, he doesn't and can't say he just believes that armed conflict is what is necessary, instead he just lies about being misinformed and ignorant which is far worse then lying because it doesn't excuse ignorance later on.
rougyI find this very disturbing, but as always what disturbs me more are the apologists on the right who are looking for any way necessary to either avoid, undermine, or completely ignore the issue.
This story wasn't even printed in my home-town paper.
Bush loses either way on this one, and if Bush supporters don't get their act together, America will lose, too.
Again.
Constitutional_PatriotThe Bushbot is performing it's function as programmed. Glitches like Nucular are actually left in the program for the comedic value.
LOL LOL LOL
grinterat least he found the right door this time.
rougy"Israel has known about the report for more than a month."
I hope (but don't expect to see) a reporter ask George W. Bush how exactly a foreign country knew about this report before he did.
9058Uhh, my head hurts just watching that. You notice he doesnt have his witty smirck anymore. He is obviously pissed and looked almost sad that he cant go to war again. Usually he trys to come off so confident that he knows exactly what he's talking about (which is funny in its own right)
jwrayFrom the point of view of Iran, it should seem terribly hypocritical that the country with the largest nuclear weapons stockpile in the world is coercing them to not develop nuclear weapons.
Doc_MHere's John Bolton's response:
http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.27201/pub_detail.asp
Farhad2000John Bolton? You are listening to John Bolton on assessments on the NIE? Hes the same person advocating for aggressive military action against Iran.
In 2002 he stated Cuba had biological weapons, and was exporting them, when CIA contradicted him he fired the CIA intelligence person responsible for Latin America. In 2004 he stated that Iran is enriching uranium and procuring nuclear weapons, a statement that was refuted by the IAEA.
The same person who believes a congressional witch-hunt should take place based on the NIE because it did not meet with his preconceived views on Iran:
Doc_MWhoa, just making the information available, ya know, both sides of the story. don't hang me for it.
Discuss...
Enable JavaScript to submit a comment.