The Oval Office
9:01 P.M. EST
Good evening.
Three days ago, in large numbers, Iraqis went to the polls to choose their own leaders - a landmark day in the history of liberty. In coming weeks, the ballots will be counted, a new government formed, and a people who suffered in tyranny for so long will become full members of the free world.
This election will not mean the end of violence. But it is the beginning of something new: constitutional democracy at the heart of the Middle East. And this vote - 6,000 miles away, in a vital region of the world - means that America has an ally of growing strength in the fight against terror.
[This election will not mean the end of violence. The US military industrial complex needs perpetual war to grease its wheels, increase shareholder value and line the pockets of executives and investors. But it is the beginning of something new: the illusion of constitutional democracy (like we have here in the US) at the heart of the Middle East. And this vote, 6,000 miles away (I do not really know what the distance has to do with the issues at hand, but I thought I would throw that in), in a region vital to our friend we affectionately call "Big Oil", means that America has a manufactured ally of growing strength in the fight against those who dare defy our thrust for global domination.]
All who had a part in this achievement - Iraqis, Americans, and Coalition partners - can be proud. Yet our work is not done. There is more testing and sacrifice before us. I know many Americans have questions about the cost and direction of this war. So tonight I want to talk to you about how far we have come in Iraq, and the path that lies ahead.
[All who had a part in this achievement, even the torturers at Abu Gharib, can be proud. Yet our work is not done. There are still many Iraqis resisting our imperial conquest of their nation, and they must be killed. There is more testing and sacrifice before you (as my wealthy cronies and corporate partners reap the benefits). I know many Americans have had the audacity to question the cost and direction of this war. Since I have not swept away enough civil liberties or checks and balances to become an outright dictator, I will play this silly game of explaining myself and pretending to be accountable to the voters who did not really elect me anyway (thanks to my brother, dearest Katherine Harris, and my friends at Diebold).]
From this office, nearly three years ago, I announced the start of military operations in Iraq. Our Coalition confronted a regime that defied United Nations Security Council Resolutions, violated a cease-fire agreement, sponsored terrorism, and possessed, we believed, weapons of mass destruction. After the swift fall of Baghdad, we found mass graves filled by a dictator, we found some capacity to restart programs to produce weapons of mass destruction, but we did not find those weapons.
[From this office, nearly three years ago, I announced the start of the invasion and illegal occupation of Iraq. Our coalition confronted a regime that defied the United Nations, much like mine often does. I willfully lied to you when I told you that Saddam Hussein was affiliated with Osama bin Laden and possessed weapons of mass destruction. We Evangelicals like to call those "little white lies". Psychologically, you needed a target from which you could extract revenge for 9/11 and we of the ruling patrician class needed a launching point in our quest for global hegemony. For more on that, visit the Website for the Project for the New American Century. Many of my cohorts signed the Project's Statement of Principles found at http://www.newamericancentury.org/statementofprinciples.htm.
After the fall of Baghdad, we found mass graves filled by a dictator who the United States government supported throughout the 1980's (with full knowledge that he was engaging in genocide). We also found some capacity to restart programs to produce weapons of mass production, but we did not find those weapons. We did not actually waste our resources looking too hard because we already knew they did not exist.]
It is true that Saddam Hussein had a history of pursuing and using weapons of mass destruction. It is true that he systematically concealed those programs, and blocked the work of UN weapons inspectors. It is true that many nations believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. But much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. And as your President, I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq.
[It is true that Saddam Hussein had a history of pursuing and using weapons of mass destruction. The US government knows this history well because it aided him in the 80's. It is true that few, if any, nations actually believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, although the United States, the UK and Israel did a phenomenal job of pretending to believe it. But for the most part, it would not be wrong to say that there was, and still is, a serious lack of intelligence. And as your President, I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq, which ultimately makes me a perpetrator of the murders of over 30,000 Iraqi civilians (that is the number to which I will admit, although reliable sources place the number closer to 100,000).]
Yet it was right to remove Saddam Hussein from power. He was given an ultimatum - and he made his choice for war. And the result of that war was to rid the world of a murderous dictator who menaced his people, invaded his neighbors, and declared America to be his enemy. Saddam Hussein, captured and jailed, is still the same raging tyrant - only now without a throne. His power to harm a single man, woman, or child is gone forever. And the world is better for it.
[Yet it was right to remove Saddam Hussein from power. He was given an ultimatum, which we heavily anticipated he would defy, and he gave us our coveted war. And the result of that war was to fill the pockets of my corporate cronies. It also resulted in the eradication of a murderous dictator who menaced his people and invaded sovereign nations. Now don't get confused; I was talking about Saddam, not myself. Saddam Hussein, captured, jailed and dethroned is still the same raging tyrant. His power to harm a single man, woman, or child is gone forever. Fortunately for those rooting for the forces of malevolence, I wield far more power than Saddam could have imagined, and am a far bigger threat to humanity than Saddam was in his wildest fantasies.]
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