Is Lying About The Reason For War An Impeachable Offense?

1) But wouldn't the intelligence lead us to whatever it was the intelligence was indicating?

2) Also, couldn't the U.S. reveal the full intelligence to well-trusted third parties, like a group at the U.N., Amnesty International, or some credible reporters who would sign a harsh non-disclosure agreement? At least have unbiased people vouch for it!

One source of suspicion for many people is that few significant countries went in to support the U.S.. It seems maybe the U.S. case for war wasn't convincing even when personal, private meetings were held with various leaders.

Why the lack of follow-through?

From here...http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/06/03/sprj.irq.wmd.un.report/ We get this quote..."But the inspectors also made "little progress" in clearing up remaining questions concerning possible WMD programs, according to the latest report from UNMOVIC.

According to the report, released Monday, "The long list of proscribed items unaccounted for and as such resulting in unresolved disarmament issues was neither shortened by the inspections, nor by Iraqi declarations and documentation."

Also,from here... http://www.fas.org/news/iraq/1999/08/990825-iraq-rpt.htm we get this..."Panel. On discrepancies in the material balance of chemical munitions, Iraq continues its refusal to account for a falsely-reported expenditure of some 6,000 chemical munitions, for the disappearance of 550 artillery shells filled with mustard agent: - and for an inaccurate accounting of R-400 aerial CW bombs. Concerning VX, UNSCOM has stated that the amount of VX Iraq produced has yet to be verified and that Iraq has yet to admit to its weaponization of VX into missiles. Concerning the material balance of chemical weapons production equipment, the Commission stated that the disposition of eighteen shipping containers remains to be verified, it is known that two containers held nearly 200 pieces of glass-lined production equipment.

The UNSCQM and Anorim reports note that in the biological weapons area, priority issues begin with Iraq's failure at a fundamental level to provide an accurate declaration of its BW program; Iraq has submitted several declarations all found to be incomplete. Iraq has not accounted for materials and items that may have been used or acquired for such a program. The result of these failures is that the scope of priority issues for disarmament covers all aspects of Iraq's BW program. Iraq retains the industrial capability and knowledge base to develop BW agents quickly."

But the Bush and Blair administrations told us they knew Iraq had WMD - now, that's something else - that it had the intelligence about where and what.

nimh wrote:

But the Bush and Blair administrations told us they knew Iraq had WMD - now, that's something else - that it had the intelligence about where and what.

That's why the "as big as California" argument that Scipio used so ardently doesnt stick, either - if they knew, shouldn't they be able to find some evidence within a reasonable scope of time?

These are the same people who, during the war, had us believe that the Iraqi army quickly fell into disarray, humbled by the American advance - and on this we've actually been able to see they were right to some extent - yet now we are supposed to believe that this regime in disarray, in the middle of war, was able to have sophisticated chemical weapons, that purportedly could have been sent flying in the direction of enemy countries on rockets "within 45 minutes", dismantled and disappeared beyond any recoverable trace within the short time the American advance took?

But they have found weapons. They found the missles especially tweaked to allow for biochem weapons in them. They found the trucks, which had been scrubbed clean. They found that bi-use plant a couple days into the war. To say that we've found nothing is not true.

Iraqi mobile labs nothing to do with germ warfare, report finds

Peter Beaumont, Antony Barnett and Gaby Hinsliff
Sunday June 15, 2003
The Observer

An official British investigation into two trailers found in northern Iraq has concluded they are not mobile germ warfare labs, as was claimed by Tony Blair and President George Bush, but were for the production of hydrogen to fill artillery balloons, as the Iraqis have continued to insist.
The conclusion by biological weapons experts working for the British Government is an embarrassment for the Prime Minister, who has claimed that the discovery of the labs proved that Iraq retained weapons of mass destruction and justified the case for going to war against Saddam Hussein.

Instead, a British scientist and biological weapons expert, who has examined the trailers in Iraq, told The Observer last week: 'They are not mobile germ warfare laboratories. You could not use them for making biological weapons. They do not even look like them. They are exactly what the Iraqis said they were - facilities for the production of hydrogen gas to fill balloons.'

The conclusion of the investigation ordered by the British Government - and revealed by The Observer last week - is hugely embarrassing for Blair, who had used the discovery of the alleged mobile labs as part of his efforts to silence criticism over the failure of Britain and the US to find any weapons of mass destruction since the invasion of Iraq. [..]

The revelation that the mobile labs were to produce hydrogen for artillery balloons will also cause discomfort for the British authorities because the Iraqi army's original system was sold to it by the British company, Marconi Command & Control.

But the Bush and Blair administrations told us they knew Iraq had WMD - now, that's something else - that it had the intelligence about where and what.