October 05, 2003

Clark Wants Probe of W.House on Iraq Intelligence

This story could be the most important political story
in many years. Here a national leader in pursuit of
the Presidency has made the boldest of moves. Now the
people and at least one potential anti-Bush are both
way ahead of the "US mainstream news media," rather
than politics as usual as it has been for awhile now
with the people deadened by the propaunditgandists and
the political leaders taking their cues from the
propapunditgandists...Those on the Left who mock Clark
or question his intentions need to re-evaluate their
positions...Fast...This guy wants to fight!

"Nothing could be a more serious violation of public trust than to consciously make a war based on false claims," he told a conference of military reporters and editors. "Its handling of intelligence and its retaliation against its critics may have been criminal."

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=615&u=/nm/20031003/pl_nm/iraq_bush_clark_dc&printer=1

Clark Wants Probe of W.House on Iraq Intelligence
Fri Oct 3, 4:34 PM ET Add Politics to My Yahoo!

By Patricia Wilson

ARLINGTON, Va. (Reuters) - Democratic presidential
candidate Wesley Clark (news - web sites) called on
Friday for an independent probe of the Bush
administration's use of intelligence before the Iraq
(news - web sites) war, calling it "twisted" and
possibly criminal.

The retired four-star Army general and NATO (news -
web sites) commander who entered the 2004 White House
race two weeks ago amid a flood of publicity and
instantly rose among the leaders in some polls, said
the American public needed to know if it was
"intentionally deceived."


In his harshest indictment yet of President Bush (news
- web sites), Clark said the administration's
"irresponsible" Iraq policy had put Americans in
danger and the United States in crisis mode at home
and abroad.


Going further than his nine rivals for the Democratic
presidential nomination, most of whom have called for
a special counsel to probe the leak of an undercover
CIA (news - web sites) officer's name, Clark also
demanded an independent commission investigate the
"possible manipulation" of intelligence leading to the
war in Iraq.


"Nothing could be a more serious violation of public
trust than to consciously make a war based on false
claims," he told a conference of military reporters
and editors. "Its handling of intelligence and its
retaliation against its critics may have been
criminal."


"INTELLIGENCE GAP"


"We need to know if we face an intelligence gap ...
because the system has been twisted to suit the
prejudices of the policy makers," Clark said.


Bush defended on Friday his decision to attack Iraq,
brushing aside questions about his justifications for
war and citing what he said was preliminary evidence
from the top CIA weapons hunter that Baghdad had been
developing unconventional weapons even though none
have so far been found.


Clark, who retired from the military three years ago,
said he had seen "no compelling" evidence that Iraqi
leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was an
imminent threat and depicted the war in Iraq as a
policy hatched "behind the scenes."


He said he heard the arguments that the Sept. 11, 2001
attacks justified an invasion to oust Saddam, that it
provided an opportunity to remake the region and that
there was "a list of states they want to take down in
the Middle East."


"I had hoped it was just Pentagon (news - web sites)
hallway scuttlebutt ... but it looks like it was more
than that," he said.


Clark accused the Bush administration of having an
answer before they knew the question.


"They seized on Sept. 11 as proof of a problem that
required the solution of attacking Iraq," he said.
"Saddam was involved in Sept. 11, they implied, and
Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, so they made
Iraq a centerpiece in the war on terror."


Clark, who has portrayed himself as the best
Democratic candidate to challenge Bush on national
security issues, charged the administration with
violating the principles of American democracy by
retaliating against anyone who expressed dissent or
questioned logic.


The Justice Department (news - web sites) is
investigating who disclosed the identity of an
undercover CIA officer whose husband had challenged
Bush's claims about Iraq's weapons threat.


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Posted by richard at October 5, 2003 02:16 PM