THEN:
“The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on Sept. 11, 2001, and still goes on.”
-GWB, aircraft carrier, May 1
NOW:
“We have no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with the September 11 attacks.”
-GWB, this week
BUT…:
“There’s no question that Saddam Hussein had al Qaeda ties.”
-GWB, this week
My bet is, stories like this one on CNN.com do nothing to debunk the popular (70 percent!) notion that Saddam did 9/11 – just the opposite. Just putting Saddam’s picture next to a headline that includes “9/11” is the same tactic the administration has been using, apparently effectively, for months.
Where has the adminstration done this? Please cite times and places.
Thank you.
Marty:
Just watch any pundit show for the last eight months, and count the number of times 9/11 is mentioned in the same breath as Iraq or Saddam.
For a more specific example, Bush’s “we need $87 billion more” speech on 9/7, ostensibly about the war in Iraq, included four direct mentions of 9/11, and many more indirect ones. They have gone out of their way to mention 9/11 and Saddam in the same sentence, and 9/11 and Iraq in the same sentence.
In the very quotes I mention in the post, GWB is simultaneously backing away from and reinforcing the bogus link.