Galloway thanked Saddam for cash

[Truthiness Inspector]

Mr Galloway also offered to help set up with Saddam an Iraqi satellite television channel, broadcasting in English, months before the beginning of the Iraq war.

An account of their meeting, published for the first time in a House of Commons report into Mr Galloway's failure to declare his financial backers, contradicts the MP's insistence that he was unaware of receiving money from the former Iraqi regime.

The record was unearthed by Philip Mawer, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, during a four-year inquiry into Mr Galloway's activities. As a result, he faces being suspended from the house for 18 sitting days.

In his report, Sir Philip is coy about how he obtained the document, saying only that he "became aware" last year that a record might exist of a meeting between Mr Galloway and Saddam, and he "began inquiries to see if I could obtain a copy". He did so in November, he said.

The document says that during the meeting in August 2002, Mr Galloway praised Tariq Aziz, Iraq's deputy prime minister, who also attended, for helping to secure his financial backing.

Mr Galloway, addressing Saddam as "Your Excellency", tells him: "Mr Tariq Aziz has helped us with his contacts ... But we are now suffering from the problem of the price of oil, which has resulted in a reduction in income and delay in receiving our dues."

There was also a reference to discussions between Mr Galloway and Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, Iraq's information minister, who earned the nickname Comical Ali for his surreal defiance as the regime was toppled.

After considering Sir Philip's findings, a committee of senior MPs concluded that Mr Galloway had secretly accepted funding from Saddam's regime.

The Times

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22096829-15084,00.html

[Horse with no Name]

1. I think this was debunked

A long time ago.

[Hissyspit]

2. Galloway Free of Any Police Investigation

Taking Saddam's money to help with someone's medical bills. How corrupt of him!

http://news.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=1122652007

Galloway free of any police investigation

POLICE have no plans to launch an investigation into George Galloway over his charity's links to Saddam Hussein's regime, it emerged yesterday. The Respect MP faces suspension from Parliament for 18 days after a damning report from the Commons watchdog, which accused him of concealing the true source of funding for a charity he established.

But Sir Philip Mawer, the Standards' Commissioner, said he had not had access to, nor sought, Mr Galloway's personal bank statements or those of the Mariam Appeal, the charity at the centre of the controversy.

Reports yesterday suggested that Scotland Yard detectives could seek papers from the Serious Fraud Office to establish whether there were grounds for prosecution.

However, Metropolitan Police sources yesterday said that there was no current inquiry and there were "no plans" to investigate Mr Galloway.

[canetoad]

3. Three guesses who owns that right wing pile of shit

The Australian, I mean. He owns another popular media outlet that rhymes with pox.

[ima_sinnic]

4. well, I haven't heard any big criticism of Rumsfilled for accepting Saddam's

cash

[xchrom]

5. i think there is ''truthiness'' in this OP --

who cares?

never mind that galloway has been cleared --

can that even to begin to compare with giving saddam weapons? --

[Horse with no Name]

6. In "some" circles it does

:eyes:

[xchrom]

8. lol -- agreed. n/t

[Canuckistanian]

7. They're really out to get Galloway, aren't they?

They just keep flogging this dead horse.

And, like the proverbial fish story, it keeps getting more and more outrageous.