Whooda that article by Michael Kinsey was a clever piece of obfuscation.
Kinsey deliberately misses the target, though its plain enough.
It wasn't just the (leaked) briefing paper for the 23 July 2002 meeting.
It was incautious remarks made by Defense Minister Hoon about "spikes of activity to put pressure on the regime", coupled with figures showing the amount of ordnance used and when; plus an admission that regime change per se was illegal.
But Kinsey doesnt want to bother you about all that unnecessary detail.
Such as the fact that under US law only Congress can declare war or give the President authority to wage it.
And that from April to September 2002 the US airforce was engaged in a softening up excercise of Iraqi air defense facilities "to put pressure on the regime", when Congress only authorised the president to go to war against Iraq on 11th October 2002.
If you had been paying attention, you might have noticed that this news was discussed here
http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=52517&start=0
some weeks ago, and the contributions on a2k far out weigh the pathetic scribblings of Michael Kinsey.
For your information I post again my original introduction to that thread.
"At last the truth is out. Courtesy af leaked documents, incautious remarks by British Defence Secretary Hoon and probing by Liberal Democrat spokesman Menzies Campbell.
As we all knew, regime change was the objective from the start.
July 2002 meeting in London has revealing statement by Hoon that the US has "already begun 'spikes of activity' to put pressure on the regime"
That is bombing Iraq and the start of the war began in May 2002 not March 03.
Campbell illicited from the MoD ordnance figures.
March 2002 no bombs on Iraq
April 0.3 tonnes
May 7.3 tonnes
June 10.4
July 9.5
August 14.1
September 54.6
October 17.7
Nov 33.6
Dec 53.2
In the early hours of 5 Sept 2002 more than a hundred allied aircraft attacked airfield H3 the main air defense site in western Iraq. It was destroyed to allow special forces operating in Jordan to enter Iraq undetected.
Nine weeks later Bush and Blair went to the UN to try and pursuade them to allow the use of military force.
The number of raids shot up from 4 to 30 per month, allied aircraft repeatedly returning to sites they had hit to finish them off.
The briefing paper for the July 2002 meeting stated categorically that
"When the Prime Minister discussed Iraq with President Bush at Crawford in April 2002 he said that the UK would support military action to bring about regime change."
also that
"Regime change per se is not a proper basis for military action under international law"
and it was therefore necessary to
"...create the conditions in which we could legally support military action"
the leaked British documents have found their way to the US political debate. They are just as damaging for Bush.
Under the US constitution only Congress has the power to authorise war, AND IT DID NOT DO SO UNTIL 11 OCTOBER 2002.
Military action to oust Saddam before that would constitute a serious abuse of power by the president."
Above based on article in New Statesman by Michael Smith.
Such language!
... it had been much too long since the local talent had been poked with a stick ... predictable responses, but entertaining just the same.>>
