Posted by The Crux | ABC News reported:
"The September Israeli airstrike on a suspected nuclear site in Syria had been in the works for months, ABC News has learned, and was delayed only at the strong urging of the United States.
"In early July the Israelis presented the United States with satellite imagery that they said showed a nuclear facility in Syria. They had additional evidence that they said showed that some of the technology was supplied by North Korea.
"One U.S. official told ABC's Martha Raddatz the material was "jaw dropping' because it raised questions as to why U.S. intelligence had not previously picked up on the facility...."
"Some in the administration supported the Israeli action, but others, notably Sect. of State Condoleezza Rice did not. One senior official said the U.S. convinced the Israelis to 'confront Syria before attacking.'"
In other words, ABC learned that some Bush Administration officials aren't as gung-ho about starting wars as we'd thought. Is the implication that we should believe any forthcoming arguments for the bombing Iran?
And why is it "jaw dropping" that...
U.S. intelligence failed to detect Syria's suspected nuclear facility? Despite phenomenal equipment, intelligence agencies still haven't located WMDs in Iraq. Perhaps our equipment isn't phenomenal -- or perhaps there weren't any WMDs (or suspected nuclear facilities) to detect. If the Israelis told U.S. officials back in July about Syria's suspected nuclear facility, what stopped us from pointing satellites at Syria during the two months before Israel bombed that country?
Maybe Administration officials are shooting straight this time. With my mind reading skills still vacationing in New England, I don't know what's really going on -- and neither do most other Earth dwellers. Sadly, given the Administration's track record and comatose credibility, it's hard to hear any of its messages without questioning the strategy behind them and their truth value.
Last month, two more ex-CIA officials came forward and said that the President had been told before the invasion that Iraq did not have WMDs. (BN-Politics) In 2003, Administration officials told us that Iraq had been connected to the 9/11 attacks -- for a while, anyway. Six months after the Iraq invasion, President Bush publicly debunked that myth, yet polls indicated that most Americans believed it anyway (BBC).
The Administration also ignored pre-war intelligence about the the long-term nature of the Iraq invasion and how the invasion would fertilize Iraq for terrorist activities.... Look where we are now. Was it incompetence or info manipulation?
For examples of other issues that have strained the Administration's credibility, see the posts linked below.
* Two More ex-CIA Officers Say There Were no WMDs
* Experts Pooh-Pooh War Rhetoric, Candidates Still Use it
* Declassified Pre-War Intelligence Report
* Petraeus' Explanation of the 190,000 Weapons Missing in Iraq
* Have U.S. Officials Protected Blackwater?
* Inspector General Blocked Investigation re: Contractor Fraud
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