But in the last several weeks we have seen a wild departure from that tradition.
And the suggestion that's been made by some US senators that the president of the United States or any member of this administration purposely misled the American people on pre-war intelligence is one of the most dishonest and reprehensible charges ever aired in this city."
God, what a bastard.
It is increasingly clear to a majority of Americans—and has been clear to some of us for years—that the Bush administration absolutely "misled the American people on pre-war intelligence." Whether it was purposeful or not is still up for debate, primarily because they won't let anyone investigate it. If it wasn't purposeful, then it was the result of massive incompetence. Either way, it's not the fault of the people who are pointing it out.
Dick Cheney himself was a primary misleader. He repeatedly made public assertions that he absolutely knew to be false. He has never been made to answer for any of it, and now he's attacking those who are pointing it out.
Evil. Pure and simple. If you're religious, here's your devil, in action.
The Progress Report lays out some of Cheney's more egregious misleadings..
CHENEY SAID IT WAS 'PRETTY WELL CONFIRMED' THAT IRAQI INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS MET WITH A 9/11 HIJACKER: On December 9, 2001, Vice President Cheney said it was "pretty well confirmed, that [one of the 9/11 hijackers, Mohammed Atta] did go to Prague and he did meet with a senior official of the Iraqi intelligence service in Czechoslovakia last April, several months before the attack." The CIA has stated publicly that it didn't have "any credible information" that the meeting took place. The bi-partisan 9/11 Commission concluded the meeting did not occur. Even after the 9/11 Commission issued their findings, Cheney refused to back away from his statements. In June 2004, he stated that "we just don't know" whether the meeting took place.
CHENEY SAID THAT IRAQ TRAINED AL-QAEDA TERRORISTS: On December 2, 2002, Vice President Cheney claimed that Saddam Huissen's regime "has had high-level contacts with al Qaeda going back a decade and has provided training to al Qaeda terrorists." It wasn't true and the administration knew it. According to the New York Times the information came from a detainee "identified as a likely fabricator months before the Bush administration began to use his statements as the foundation for its claims that Iraq trained Al Qaeda members to use biological and chemical weapons." A February 2002 document by the Defense Intelligence Agency said that the detainee Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi, ''was intentionally misleading the debriefers.''
See that? That's called "evidence." It's a kind of "fact." It's what's known as "true." It's not just random accusations against one's opponents, it's backed up with documents and direct quotes.
I've asked it before and I'll ask it again, if you voted for these people, seriously, what is wrong with you?