Iraq = Al Queda

I’m stepping outside my topic bopundaries a bit, but this article was interesting to me.  I’d always beed confused on the correlation between terrorism and the war with Iraq, and I still am! But at least now I know what communication went on between the top government officials.

It started because Rumsfeld was allowed leeway to assign work and direct orders

“In excerpts released in February, Thomas F. Gimble, the acting inspector general of the Pentagon, criticized the effort as an alternative intelligence-assessment operation and denounced it as improper. However, Gimble said, the intelligence operation was not illegal or unauthorized because Pentagon directives allowed Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz to assign the work.”

It appears much of the intelligence gathering was done outside the CIA. Much of this stuff is being declassified and the full report by the inspector general mentions, “how a group of Pentagon officials and on-loan intelligence analysts were able to shunt aside contradictory reports and persuade top administration officials that they had powerful evidence of connections between Saddam’s regime and al-Qaida.”

Those eho played a part in this mess refute any wrongdoing by saying the CIA should be protected from criticism.  (Imagine if that was true for the executive branch or any gov. department.)

There is still so many holes to fill here but thankfully documents are starting to be unearthed.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003653990_feith06.html

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