When going over the countless false claims made by the Bush administration about the Iraqi threat, or lack thereof, one of the fun ones is the claim that Saddam Hussein had chemical weapons that could be launched against the U.S. or our allies “within 45 minutes.”
We’ve since learned that U.S. intelligence officials didn’t believe the claim and mistrusted the source. In fact, these same officials intentionally left the claim out of the October 2002 NIE because it was so unreliable.
But this didn’t stop the White House from repeating the claim over and over again. In fact, they were so anxious to use this as part of the case for war, the White House simply sidestepped the CIA on this point altogether.
To cite just one example, in September 2002, Bush said the “danger to our country is grave and it is growing” because Iraq could “launch a biological or chemical attack in as little as 45 minutes after the order is given.”
Now that the media is starting to go back and revisit which, if any, of the White House’s claims about Iraq were accurate, the 45-minute claim is getting renewed scrutiny.
The Bush administration, filled with terribly clever folks, has come up with a new defense: We don’t remember anything.
Yesterday, Rumsfeld was asked in a Defense Department briefing whether he believed, as Bush did, that “Saddam Hussein could act within 45 minutes with weapons of mass destruction?”
Rumsfeld said, “I don’t remember the statement being made, to be perfectly honest.” General Richard Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he didn’t remember the statement either.
Why didn’t I think of that? Hell, I’m surprised more people don’t try to use this with impunity.
Rumsfeld’s boss, the President of the United States, repeats the claim frequently in making the case for war. Since he’s the Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld was presumably paying some attention to these claims. But now, just a year later, Rumsfeld has the perfect out: “I don’t remember the statement being made.”
Brilliant. I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.
In fact, yesterday’s Progress Report noted that Rumsfeld’s memory has been increasingly hazy of late now that so many of the administration’s Iraq claims have been proven false.
Rumsfeld, last Friday:
“I never said imminent threat, and I don’t know anyone who did say imminent threat.”
Rumsfeld, last September:
“Some have argued that the nuclear threat from Iraq is not imminent — that Saddam is at least 5-7 years away from having nuclear weapons. I would not be so certain. And we should be just as concerned about the immediate threat from biological weapons. Iraq has these weapons.”
If Rumsfeld is having trouble remembering basic facts such as the administration’s specific concerns about an enemy, isn’t it time that he retire? Isn’t it a little disconcerting that the Defense Secretary has no recollection of these fairly important events?