Far-left liars endanger us all

Far-left liars endanger us all

At this point we have four independent sources that say there was no lying by President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair regarding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The 9/11 commission, the Senate Intelligence Committee, Lord Butler's British investigation and Vladimir Putin have all stated that the WMD intelligence was faulty but the politicians did nothing untoward.

So what should be done with the people who accused Bush and Blair of intentionally lying to bring war to the world? Have you heard any of them apologize for their slander? I haven't.

Let's go further. The 9/11 commission report criticizes both President Bush and Bill Clinton for failing to act on the Al Qaeda danger. That's what the Richard Clarke controversy was about. The former White House terrorism adviser ran wild suggesting that Bush ignored him. The partisan Clarke played down the fact that Clinton also failed to act on his advice to actively engage Osama Bin Laden. The 9/11 commission filled in that blank.

Imagine if Bush had ignored the CIA assertion that Saddam had anthrax and other substances. If Al Qaeda had attacked us with deadly weapons from Baghdad, and Bush had rejected intelligence about WMDs, he would have gone down in history as the incompetent of all time.

Based on intelligence, Bush had to confront Saddam. He tried to work within the framework of the United Nations. But it was obvious the UN would procrastinate as long as possible, as it is doing now in Sudan.

What would you have done if you were Bush? You are told by U.S. and British intelligence that a brutal dictator had WMDs and had supported terrorism all over the Mideast. Known terrorists, including Bin Laden pal Abu Musab al-Zarqawi were living in Iraq. And you sit there while Hans Blix runs around the desert? Come on. Bush could have delayed action and planned better for the aftermath, but, ultimately, he had to act.

Every time I hear some extremist rant about presidential "lies," I get furious. These people put all of us in danger. Many far-left Web sites spew allegations that have no basis in fact. Unfortunately, these people now have sympathy in the mainstream press and can get their libel distributed. Let me give you an example from experience.

In my analysis of the attack on Sept. 11, I gave airtime to a young man who lost his father at the World Trade Center. This guy said on my TV program that Bush and his father were responsible for the 3,000 deaths and that his own father had "allegedly" been murdered by Al Qaeda. He went on to imply that America was the true terrorist nation.

The man had no evidence for this, and was dismissed by me in a not very gentle way. The guy was and is a disgrace. But not to the far left: To them, he's a hero. These people have used him as an example of someone persecuted by "conservatives."

It is dishonest and disheartening. The ultraleft fanatics will pretty much say and do anything to destroy those with whom they disagree. These people are hurting all Americans by obstructing the true terrorist danger we are facing today.

Bush and Blair did not lie. It is far past time that clear-thinking Americans begin holding the true liars accountable. Our lives may depend on it.

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