The Democratic Side Step

[spare_change]

Bill Clinton Says He Opposed Iraq War From the Outset

Former president Bill Clinton said on Tuesday that he "opposed Iraq from the beginning," apparently glossing over the more nuanced views of the war he has expressed over time. Clinton made the remarks while campaigning for his wife in Iowa - a largely anti-war state for Democrats -- as he expressed bitterness over getting a tax cut with money that could have been spent on the military.

"Even though I approved of Afghanistan and opposed Iraq from the beginning, I still resent that I was not asked or given the opportunity to support those soldiers," Clinton said. He said he "should not have gotten" the tax cuts he received as a wealthy earner.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton voted to authorize the war in Iraq, and has never apologized for her vote, even as the Democratic nominating process has reached fever pitch and she has been drawn into a three-way tie with more ardent Iraq war foes, Sen. Barack Obama and former Sen. John Edwards.

Both the former president and his wife have grown increasingly critical of the war's management in recent years. Both have also pointed to their remarks, made before the invasion, in which they said they would like to see weapons inspectors finish their work in Iraq before launching an attack - a distinction that has allowed both Clintons to claim consistency on Iraq.

Sen. Clinton has, at times, even cited the experience her husband had dealing with the Iraqi regime in the 1990s as one reason she gave Pres. Bush the benefit of the doubt when she voted for the war in 2002.

But past remarks made by the former president do leave open a question about how fervently Clinton opposed the war in real time and before it grew widely unpopular. In immediate hindsight, Clinton did not sound like a fierce critic. "I supported the president when he asked for authority to stand up against weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Clinton said on May 18, 2003, during a commencement speech at Tougaloo College in Mississippi.

[spare_change]

CLINTON: Good evening.

Earlier today, I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces. Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors.

Their purpose is to protect the national interest of the United States, and indeed the interests of people throughout the Middle East and around the world.

Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.

I want to explain why I have decided, with the unanimous recommendation of my national security team, to use force in Iraq; why we have acted now; and what we aim to accomplish.

[spare_change]

Former President Clinton has revealed that he continues to support President Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq but chastised the administration over the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison.

"I have repeatedly defended President Bush against the left on Iraq, even though I think he should have waited until the U.N. inspections were over," Clinton said in a Time magazine interview that will hit newsstands Monday, a day before the publication of his book "My Life."

[spare_change]

Former president Bill Clinton said he agreed with President Bush's decision to confront Iraq about its potential weapons programs, but thought the administration erred in starting a war in 2003 rather than allowing United Nations weapons inspectors longer to carry out their work.

"In terms of the launching of the war, I believe we made an error in not allowing the United Nations to complete the inspections process," Clinton told CBS News's Dan Rather in a "60 Minutes" interview to air tonight.

Clinton made similar comments in an interview with Time magazine, in which he said he "supported the Iraq thing" but questioned its timing. Portions of both interviews -- part of the publicity campaign in advance of this week's release of Clinton's memoirs -- were distributed in advance by the news organizations.

The Time excerpts, in particular, leave Clinton's views on Iraq somewhat jumbled. He both defends Bush for confronting a threat of which Clinton also spoke in dire terms while president, and minimizes the size and urgency of the problem posed by Iraq's suspected weapons programs.

Noting that he has "repeatedly defended President Bush against the left" on Iraq, Clinton dismissed the notion that the Iraq war was principally about protecting petroleum or financial interests.

Instead, he asserts that Bush acted primarily for ideological reasons and that the president was under the sway of Vice President Cheney and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz. "We went in there because he bought the Wolfowitz-Cheney analysis" that defeating Iraq would help transform the greater Middle East toward democracy.

Clinton's own rhetoric while president emphasized the commitments to allow unfettered weapons inspections that Iraq had made under the terms of surrender in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, and the likelihood that then-President Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction that he planned to use.

[spare_change]

"When I left office, there was a substantial amount of biological and chemical material unaccounted for. That is, at the end of the first Gulf War, we knew what he had. We knew what was destroyed in all the inspection processes and that was a lot. And then we bombed with the British for four days in 1998. We might have gotten it all; we might have gotten half of it; we might have gotten none of it. But we didn't know. So I thought it was prudent for the president to go to the U.N. and for the U.N. to say you got to let these inspectors in, and this time if you don't cooperate the penalty could be regime change, not just continued sanctions."

--Bill Clinton, July 22, 2003

[spare_change]

.... and the beat goes on.

[PunkyBob]

We know Clinton's full of shit (both of 'em). There was weekly bombing for a protracted period of time during the 90s, ordered by Clinton, mostly in the south of Iraq...and these bombs were coated in depleted uranium (DU), one of the most toxic substances known (((Natural uranium may be processed, or enriched, which separates the U-235 isotopes from the U-238. The waste material left over from this enrichment process is composed primarally of uranium-238 and is called Depleted Uranium or DU))). So are most of the bombs used against tanks in the current war. It's half-life is close to 4.5 BILLION years...just about the time for the sun to out. Upon explosion, the DU is powderized and leaks into the aquifer system...into the water supply...into people. It is said to "mildly radioactive"...but how many cases of birth defects and cancer can be called mild? Clinton can bs all he wants, but the evidence is there if you go looking for it.

[p.a]

2 wrongs do not a right make. It seems to me that Republicans would be glad to have Hillary in the White House because every case they try to make against her paints her as leaning toward there points of view.

[Iwantutowantme]

2 wrongs do not a right make. It seems to me that Republicans would be glad to have Hillary in the White House because every case they try to make against her paints her as leaning toward there points of view.

I agree. Former president Clinton was a Republican in a Democrat's clothing. He pushed in the disastorus scheme of NAFTA just like a good Republican should. If Hillary is actidentally elected the US's next president...then there will be little change in the plans of the present administration, concerning Iraq. And the rice will continue to get richer...etc...

[Fargo...really]

2 wrongs do not a right make. It seems to me that Republicans would be glad to have Hillary in the White House because every case they try to make against her paints her as leaning toward there points of view.

Every Republican I have spoken to has said they hope Hillary is the Democratic candidate because it will cause all of the Republicans to get out to vote and they believe it will pull a number of independents and Dems who are anti-Clinton (more Bill than Hillary).

The same Republicans admit that if Obama is in the race either themselves and/or lots of their friends that would vote for anyone but Hillary, would probably vote for Obama over the Republican choices that are out there.

Interesting (to me at least).

[spare_change]

“You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift. You cannot help small men by tearing down big men. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. You cannot lift the wage-earner by pulling down the wage-payer. You cannot help the poor man by destroying the rich. You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred. You cannot establish security on borrowed money. You cannot build character and courage by taking away men’s initiative and independence. You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.” —William J. H. Boetcker

[Annie]

I agree. Former president Clinton was a Republican in a Democrat's clothing. He pushed in the disastorus scheme of NAFTA just like a good Republican should. If Hillary is actidentally elected the US's next president...then there will be little change in the plans of the present administration, concerning Iraq. And the rice will continue to get richer...etc...Interesting... while in college, Billary... I mean Hillary actually was Republican! It wasn't until she hooked up with Bill that she switched!

[dave42]

Bill Clinton Says He Opposed Iraq War From the Outset

Former president Bill Clinton said on Tuesday that he "opposed Iraq from the beginning," apparently glossing over the more nuanced views of the war he has expressed over time. Clinton made the remarks while campaigning for his wife in Iowa - a largely anti-war state for Democrats -- as he expressed bitterness over getting a tax cut with money that could have been spent on the military.

"Even though I approved of Afghanistan and opposed Iraq from the beginning, I still resent that I was not asked or given the opportunity to support those soldiers," Clinton said. He said he "should not have gotten" the tax cuts he received as a wealthy earner.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton voted to authorize the war in Iraq, and has never apologized for her vote, even as the Democratic nominating process has reached fever pitch and she has been drawn into a three-way tie with more ardent Iraq war foes, Sen. Barack Obama and former Sen. John Edwards.

Both the former president and his wife have grown increasingly critical of the war's management in recent years. Both have also pointed to their remarks, made before the invasion, in which they said they would like to see weapons inspectors finish their work in Iraq before launching an attack - a distinction that has allowed both Clintons to claim consistency on Iraq.

Sen. Clinton has, at times, even cited the experience her husband had dealing with the Iraqi regime in the 1990s as one reason she gave Pres. Bush the benefit of the doubt when she voted for the war in 2002.

But past remarks made by the former president do leave open a question about how fervently Clinton opposed the war in real time and before it grew widely unpopular. In immediate hindsight, Clinton did not sound like a fierce critic. "I supported the president when he asked for authority to stand up against weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Clinton said on May 18, 2003, during a commencement speech at Tougaloo College in Mississippi.There's a laugh! It's because of this guy that I did 2 tours in the middle east enforcing the no fly zone playing games with Saddam. What really needed to be done is what happened when George "W" did with the second gulf war. I was pretty happy to see Saddam go away. Saddam had chemical weapons and he used them. He may have disposed of what he had at the time. But the potential for him to use them again in the future was there.

[dave42]

Every Republican I have spoken to has said they hope Hillary is the Democratic candidate because it will cause all of the Republicans to get out to vote and they believe it will pull a number of independents and Dems who are anti-Clinton (more Bill than Hillary).

The same Republicans admit that if Obama is in the race either themselves and/or lots of their friends that would vote for anyone but Hillary, would probably vote for Obama over the Republican choices that are out there.

Interesting (to me at least). That might be true. I have heard with Mc Cain that most true conservatives will stay home and not even go out to vote.

One guy is a flipflopper that can't be trusted and the other a socialist. There is not a lot of choices here.