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7/17/2003 07:02:00 PM | Timothy I learned from reading Emmett that Bush lied! Emmett defines a lie: Lie n. 1. A false statement deliberately presented as being true; a falsehood. 2. Something meant to deceive or give a wrong impression. Then Emmett continues to says: Now that that's out of the way, we have to ask ourselves if the uranium statement was a false statement deliberately presented as being true, or if Bush meant to deceive or give a wrong impression by uttering that statement. It bears repeating: we don't actually know if the intelligence was false. Ask yourself: why did the Bushies credit it to the British in the speech? Because they meant to deceive and give the wrong impression (which Emmett defines a lie). The CIA expressed doubts and that was apparently the 'compromise' language. Bush presented it as the truth and expected us to believe they believed it, even though the CIA warned them. They had reason to believe at the time it was not true. They wanted to create an impression that Saddam was an imminent threat and the U.S. needed to act soon. And they not only presented it to give the impression it was true, but deceived us that they had good evidence for it. Call that what you will. By Emmett's definition, it sounds like a lie. Emmett also says: All accounts agree, furthermore, that Bush (and the Brits) still believe the intelligence to be good, so presumably Bush believed it at the time he made the speech. What the world is Emmett talking about??? "All accounts"?? The Bush administration has now said that the statement should not have been included in the speech. So the administration's OWN account doesn't support the idea that the intelligence is still good, much less the accounts of many of other analysts and reports that the intelligence was not even good at the time (remember, one could easily tell the documents were forged). They have already ruled out Niger- perhaps it came from Somolia? Maybe we'll have to verify every African country before we can call it a lie. Plus, it is still deception to imply we know this ("learned") for a fact, when you have good reasons for not thinking it is a true, or have your intelligence sources telling you it is not solid enough. By the second of Emmett's definitions, it seems Emmett should call the President is liar. Maybe Emmett is right that Bush didn't lie because he fooled himself based on faith based foreign policy. If so, let's remember that the next time the President asks us to trust his judgment. I hope he is telling a lie, because in many ways that is better than a delusion. The simple explanation is that the White House politicized intelligence. perma link |
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