#%$&^@*!

President Bush sought anew on Tuesday to draw connections between the Iraqi group Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia and the terrorist network responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks, and he sharply criticized those who contend that the groups are independent of each other.

[...]

“The facts are that Al Qaeda terrorists killed Americans on 9/11, they’re fighting us in Iraq and across the world and they are plotting to kill Americans here at home again,” Mr. Bush told a contingent of military personnel here. “Those who justify withdrawing our troops from Iraq by denying the threat of Al Qaeda in Iraq and its ties to Osama bin Laden ignore the clear consequences of such a retreat.”

[...]

In his speech, Mr. Bush did not try to debunk the fact — repeated by Mr. Reid — that Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia did not exist until after the United States invasion in 2003 and has flourished since.

1. President Links Qaeda of Iraq to Qaeda of 9/11


I also just learned of this:

In 2002, troops from the 5th Special Forces Group who specialize in the Middle East were pulled out of the hunt for Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan to prepare for their next assignment: Iraq. Their replacements were troops with expertise in Spanish cultures.

2. Shifts from bin Laden hunt evoke questions


So— it seems that the president is trying to imply that we went to Iraq, not because there were weapons of mass destruction, but to eradicate Al Qaeda (which wasn't there prior to our occupation)... and perhaps, also, to overthrow Saddam and liberate the Iraqi people.

Things like this make me livid. You can't just fuck up as president and pretend that everything's going according to plan and dress it up in the best possible light. You can't just say things and pretend you never said them. You can't look at the facts and then tell a different story. That doesn't help anyone but your administration and your political party. And it shouldn't, ideally, help either one. It's ridiculous that the administration can get away with these things and not be held accountable.


I also visited the White House website a bit ago, and another thing that got on my nerves was the fact that it makes no attempt whatsoever to be impartial. It's like propaganda. According to this website, all of the Bush administration's policies have been a success— he has a commendable environmental record, he's done a great deal to improve health care, he's working hard to reduce the deficit... the list goes on. While I'd expect no less, I really do think this is a shame. The White House's website, even, makes no attempt to maintain a fair and even-handed representation of what's going on... Distortion of this sort is entirely self-serving, it is of no benefit whatsoever to the American public.