More On The Pre War Lying

The Guardian is looking at some more British memos. Not unlike the Downing street memos, these clearly show that war, not peace, was the only goal for George Bush.

Mr Bush made it clear the US intended to invade whether or not there was a second resolution and even if UN inspectors found no evidence of a banned Iraqi weapons programme.

Of course at the same time is was telling the people of the US that all Saddam had to do was obey the UN, and there would be no war. He told the people of the US that we knew exactly where the weapons were. The truth is he wanted war, and would lie to make it happen.

In private he told his co-conspirators that no matter what we were attacking.

The meeting between Mr Bush and Mr Blair, attended by six close aides, came at a time of growing concern about the failure of any hard intelligence to back up claims that Saddam was producing weapons of mass destruction in breach of UN disarmament obligations. It took place a few days before the then US secretary Colin Powell made claims - since discredited - in a dramatic presentation at the UN about Iraq's weapons programme.

This is very interesting. After a meeting where they discuss the fact there was no evidence, they send out Colin Powell to lie to the UN, and claim we do have overwhelming and indisputable evidence.

Evidence that, as noted here, has since been 'discredited'. But these notes again raise the question, did Bush know just how big a lie Powell was telling in his name?

Just how determined was Bush to start this war. He considered repainting US plans in UN colors and then use them over Iraq against Saddam. It is clear that on many levels Bush was one of the loose cannons in his administration, a clueless loose cannon.

More evidence of the total lack of planning and understanding of the situation in Iraq is made clear.

Mr Bush told the prime minister that he "thought it unlikely that there would be internecine warfare between the different religious and ethnic groups".

You do have to wonder why someone on the UK side didn't try to educate the US on the issue, but I suspect if they had the Bush administration would have ignored them.

The legality issue is also raised again, and this one remains very interesting.

Foreign Office lawyers consistently warned that an invasion would be regarded as unlawful. The book reveals that Elizabeth Wilmshurst, the FO's deputy chief legal adviser who resigned over the war, told the Butler inquiry, into the use of intelligence during the run-up to the war, of her belief that Lord Goldsmith, the attorney general, shared the FO view.

In light of the steady stream of revelations about the lies and deceptions used to start this war, how long can it be until criminal investigations start? One thing this article is very clear on is Blair lied. He lied to his people about the determination to go to war, and he lied about efforts to avoid war. I suspect the people of the UK will not take this as well at the Americans have accepted Bush's lies.


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Blair Bush Iraq