FCNNEWSSOURCE
- Washington D.C. ‘a culture of deception’ (FCN, 06-15-2008)
- The “War on Terror” Exposed (FCN/Minister Farrakhan, 05-03-2004)
Many have been caught up in the tangled web of deliberate deceptions by the Bush Administration. A few former staffers have spoken out critically regarding their tenure.
(FinalCall.com) – Gen. Colin Powell was the 65th United States Secretary of State serving from 2001-2005 in the Bush Administration. Gen. Powell was involved in a very critical portion of building the case for the invasion of Iraq when on February 5, 2003 before the United Nations Security Council, he argued in favor of military action against Iraq telling the world that there was “no doubt” that Saddam Hussein had WMDs and was working on obtaining the materials to create nuclear weapons.
Later reports showed that much of the intelligence information he passed on to the world was inaccurate, untrue and other highly placed official within the Bush administration such as vice-president Dick Cheney and then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld were aware of it. In a 2005 interview on ABC, Gen. Powell admitted that he felt “terrible” about many of the claims that were later proven to be untrue and that his reputation will forever be tainted saying “It’s a blot. I’m the one who presented it on behalf of the United States to the world, and [it] will always be a part of my record. It was painful. It’s painful now.”
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George Tenet was the Director of Central Intelligence for the United States from July 1997 to July 2004 serving in the administrations of former Pres. Bill Clinton and Pres. George Bush in that capacity. In his book “At the Center of the Storm” released in April of 2007, Mr. Tenet launched many accusations against members of the Bush administration. He said many of the claims of “faulty intelligence” levied against the CIA by members of the Bush administration–most notably vice-president Dick Cheney–were unfounded. In fact, Mr. Tenet claims that the Bush Administration ignored portions of the intelligence information provided prior to the war on Iraq and subsequently dismissed and discounted repeated warnings by the CIA that Iraq could collapse into chaos after a U.S. invasion. Citing “personal reasons,” Mr. Tenet resigned on June 3, 2004. James Pavitt, Mr. Tenet’s Deputy Director for Operations at the CIA, announced his resignation the very next day.
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Richard Clarke worked for the State Department during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. Following the presidency of George H.W. Bush, Pres. Bill Clinton promoted Mr. Clarke to be the chief counter-terrorism adviser on the U.S. National Security Council. Under President George W. Bush, Mr. Clarke continued to serve until his retirement in January 2003. In his book “Against All Enemies” dealing with his role as counter-terrorism adviser in the Clinton and Bush Administrations, he was harshly critical of the Bush Administration’s attitude toward counter-terrorism prior to 9/11 terrorist attacks and the decision-making process in going to war in Iraq.
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L. Paul Bremer is the individual who famously stated on Dec. 14, 2003 announcing the capture of Saddam Hussein “Ladies and gentlemen …we got him!”
He was appointed by President George W. Bush to oversee the reconstruction of Iraq and was placed in charge of civil administration. He served in that capacity from May 11, 2003 until limited Iraqi “sovereignty” was restored on June 28, 2004.
The former U.S. administrator in Iraq wrote “My Year in Iraq” detailing the events surrounding his appointment and his thinking regarding many of the decisions made during the aftermath of the invasion of Iraq and the removal of Saddam Hussein from power. Mr. Bremer was assigned much of the blame for the violent insurgency in Iraq that resulted from his decision to formally dissolve the Iraqi Army in May of 2003, a claim he disputes. He also has come under criticism for financial mismanagement related to military contractors and privately owned firms doing business in post-war Iraq, such as Blackwater. Many critics of the Bush administration see him as being made the “fall guy” for postwar setbacks.
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An exhaustive January 2007 study by the Center for Public Integrity and the Fund for Independence in Journalism found that senior staffers of the Bush Administration and Pres. Bush himself told untruths that were “part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses.” (See War on Truth: 935 Lies, Final Call Vol.27 #18)
–Ashahed M. Muhammad
