CAMPAIGNING FOR BUSH: Franks says America not misled, blames intelligence

[NVMojo]

Monday, October 11, 2004
Las Vegas Review-Journal

CAMPAIGNING FOR BUSH: Franks says America not misled

Support of Iraq invasion was based on intelligence reports, retired general explains
By ERIN NEFF
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Retired Gen. Tommy Franks speaks Sunday in Henderson(Las Vegas) to supporters of President Bush.

Retired Gen. Tommy Franks said Sunday he did not mislead America when he strongly asserted before the invasion of Iraq that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

"It's not a matter of misleading, it's a matter of misbelieving," Franks said in an exclusive interview with the Review-Journal prior to a 15-minute speech at a rally for President Bush at the Valley View Recreation Center in Henderson.

"I was an adamant guy," said Franks, commander in chief of the U.S. Central Command from July 2000 through July 2003. "The reports we received in the (Department of Defense) and the intelligence community simply had me convinced.

"It was not as if anyone came and tried to persuade me," said Franks, who had been analyzing Iraq for more than a decade.

Several recent reports have concluded that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and did not have the capability to create them. The Bush administration used Saddam's threat of weapons of mass destruction as a main reason to invade the country in 2003.

Franks stressed that military and political leaders in making decisions "never have the percentile of certainty." But he said he relied on his knowledge that Saddam had had weapons of mass destruction, had used them and had sought to enrich the program. He said Saddam also had given safe harbor to terrorists and had connections to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terror network.

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http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Oct-11-Mon-2004/news/24962131.html

[MikeG]

1. He's nailing Pickles, you know.

[NVMojo]

3. hmmm, maybe, but see why Nevada, home to 24-hr

gambling, drinking and prostitution is so darn important to the RepuKliKKans?

[GreenArrow]

5. Greg Palast thinks that is where the Pubs will try to steal it

.

On edit: actually, he thinks they will try to steal it in New Mexico and Colorado.

http://www.liberaloasis.com/palast3.htm

[LynnTheDem]

2. bush sure DUPED Franks.

Nahhh...Franks has ALWAYS been a total dickhead tool. Always will be.

Hey Franks...Stormin' Norman says you're a STUPID INCOMPETANT FOOL.

[jobycom]

4. So how come nothing that has happened under Bush is his fault?

In Friday's debate, he blamed the generals and war leaders for the failure in Iraq, he blamed the stock market for the loss of jobs, the recession, and the deficit, he blamed trees for forest fires, he blamed intelligence for claiming there were no WMD (even though a lot of people had shown that the evidence was false even BEFORE the invasion)....

And he still couldn't think of anything he had done wrong, except maybe a few appointments that he won't be specific about. I guess the appointments he feels he made mistakes on are those people who later told the truth about him.

Bush has failed at everything he has ever tried in his life, and somehow, it's never been his fault. My five year old acts that way, but my eleven year old has already outgrown it.

[My Pet Goat]

6. Doesn't Franks realize that Bush was blaming him...

at the debate for how bad the Iraq war turned out? Either that or Franks lacks self-esteem.

[cliss]

7. "Misbelieving?" what the hell does that mean.

Tommy, here's a little bit of info for you. You were selected to be the Interim Governor of Iraq when we first marched in last year. You wanted the Iraqis to have autonomy. You just barely touched terra firma, when Don RumsFailed called you and told you to come home.

You were dumped, short and sweet. Now, you're supervising the war in Afghanistan from your home in Florida.

These guys are vipers. They make you believe their your friend, until they get what they want from you. Then you find yourself flushed down the toilet.

Right now, they REALLY NEED you, Tommy. The desperation is becoming apparent as the sweat stains under their arms.

Just give them a week or two. "Tommy, who?" "We don't know any Tommy".

[Moderator]

8. Duplicate topic

add this article if it offers more information
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=896437