'Nation' columnist: Powell fingers Cheney

[sabra]

http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20060412-022732-2126r

'Nation' columnist: Powell fingers Cheney

WASHINGTON, April 12 (UPI) -- A liberal columnist says former Secretary of State Colin Powell told him he and the State Department knew all along Iraq posed no imminent nuclear threat to the United States.

Robert Scheer, a contributing editor to The Nation, posted a column on the magazine's website Tuesday quoting the former Army general. According to Scheer, Powell Monday blamed Vice President Dick Cheney for the administration's use of the now discredited information that Iraq sought uranium yellowcake from Niger.

That claim was investigated in February 2002 by former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who reported back to the CIA that he believed the information to be false. Wilson is the husband of Valerie Plame, the CIA agent whose identity was leaked to the media in an apparent effort to discredit Wilson's findings after he wrote about them in the New York Times in July 2003. Cheney's then-chief of staff, L. "Scooter" Libby faces trial in connection with the incident.

According to Scheer, Powell told him the State Department never believed CIA information that Iraq was actively pursing a nuclear weapon. It based its belief on the fact that Iraq had purchased aluminum tubes which it erroneously construed were to be used in the construction of a nuclear weapon. That belief reinforced the equally flawed intelligence about the Niger yellowcake.

[oldtime dfl_er]

1. my god dick cheney is just

the embodiment of evil, isn't he?

http://www.cafepress.com/scarebaby/999005

[tridim]

7. And yet he's still the most powerful person in the world

And nobody in the media is even suggesting that he get the hell out.

[saigon68]

24. He's smarter than the Chimpanzee

[Kierkegaard]

45. For the record: dirt is smarter than the chimpanzee. EOM...

[saigon68]

55. lol

[Tight_rope]

81. LMBAO...

[goforit]

69. Hmmm......can't one freeze all his assests in the end? Power is only

a perception.
Ofcourse one can use his strategies against him as well.

If you put two and two together his assests in the long run
can be retrieved.
It is hard to hold on to your assests when you have as many enemies as
he has.

[zann725]

83. Seems the assets of many in Power who've lied,& profited from this debacle

(particularly companies with inititals like (let's say) "H" and "K"...AS WELL AS their CEO's) should LONG AGO have had their company AND personal assets frozen. So that the taxpayer money from which said assets were stolen might rightfully be returned TO the People. Stolen dollars that aside from being badly budgeted, were handed-out by the suitcase-load by Contractors... as part of "secret plans" decided apart from our elected Representatives...in meetings our Reps were often "locked-out" of...excluded from...knew little about.

If we lived in a "free" society, "freezing" criminal assets SHOULD be done...as part of Criminal Justice. But a Democracy we no longer are. Thus, a problem posed.

[Donailin]

35. yeah he is.

I woke up thinking about him this morning. . . getting boo-ed off the field the other day. What went through his head as that was happening? "Fuck you, I'm the vice president and I can crush you like a bug" . . ? Probably. But he HAD to be HUMILIATED. Being more despised than Bush, how much more hateful he must be now knowing that we have him pegged as the enemy of America.

[PurpleChez]

73. What was this "boo-ing" incident you speak of? I missed this!

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

2. The house of cards is falling down quickly now! (nt)

[radfringe]

32. FYI - Link to the original NATION article

Now Powell Tells Us

http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20060424&s=scheer0411

The President played the scoundrel--even the best of his minions went along with the lies--and when a former ambassador dared to tell the truth, the White House initiated what Special Prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald calls "a plan to discredit, punish or seek revenge against Mr. Wilson." That is the important story line.

If not for the whistleblower, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, President Bush's falsehoods about the Iraq nuclear threat likely would never have been exposed.

On Monday, former Secretary of State Colin Powell told me that he and his department's top experts never believed that Iraq posed an imminent nuclear threat, but that the President followed the misleading advice of Vice President Dick Cheney and the CIA in making the claim. Now he tells us.

The harsh truth is that this President cherry-picked the intelligence data in making his case for invading Iraq and deliberately kept the public in the dark as to the countervailing analysis at the highest level of the intelligence community. While the President and his top Cabinet officials were fear-mongering with stark images of a "mushroom cloud" over American cities, the leading experts on nuclear weaponry at the Department of Energy (the agency in charge of the US nuclear-weapons program) and the State Department thought the claim of a near-term Iraqi nuclear threat was absurd.

[Virginia Dare]

3. Powell is Poppy's water carrier so no surprise there...n/t

[corporatemedia]

4. Hmmmm.. And I though it was Jeff Gannon's job to finger Cheney! n/t

edited to add -

RIMSHOT

[Ex Lion Tamer]

14. Beat me to it!

But what a disgusting thought!

[XemaSab]

28. word.

[mazzarro]

5. If Powell Said That - My Regard For Him Has Gone Even Lower

For a man that pride himself so high - and he let himself and his department to be shoved and pushed around to make false statement, he and the state department do not deserve to be accorded any respect henceforth.

[coalition_unwilling]

10. Analagous to William Rogers (Nixon's S of State during 1st term)

who was basically neutralized by Kissinger on the NSC.

[mike_c]

13. Powell's basis for respect....

[subterranean]

54. He's demonstrating how he fingered Cheney.

:puke:

[pacalo]

15. That was the time to resign. Not after the 2004 election.

[YDogg]

47. Exactly. Too little too late now, General.

[wordpix]

40. I agree, Powell's an accomplice in this crime, he stood by & LIHOP

He could have resigned and screamed this to the world and saved thousands of lives and $ 1/2 trillion (so far) to prevent this fraudulent, illegal war. Instead, he stayed in his job and was a good soldier.

[PurpleChez]

74. If Powell said that no one should have ANY regard for him.

He's just another piece of shit in the BushCo spot-a-pot.

[lovuian]

6. and yes Colin tell us something we KNOW already...

and your credibility is still in the poop shoot...
:hurts:

It just gets me laughing :rofl: to see the underlings and YES MEN
being literally politically destroyed one by one !!!

Bush & Cheney are quite the virus that has infected politics...

[leftchick]

8. A liberal columnist??

Gee do they start stories about Bill Kristol sayinghe is a neoconservative pnacer? :eyes:

[UpInArms]

26. and I never see the MSM refer to Limpballs as a rabid rightwing blivet

:eyes:

[Toucano]

31. It's UPI. What do you expect from the Moonies? n/t

[MoJoWorkin]

56. I thought the same thing---"liberal columnist" stuck out like a sore thumb

How biased is the reporting of the report. Geez!!

[alarcojon]

9. What - did Colon's conscience get to him?

I'm tempted to say "too little, too late, Colon" - but if this helps bring the vampire out into the light, then Powell will have done the least he could do.

[BigDDem]

11. Hey Colin

Have you found those "mobile labs" yet?

[Binka]

30. Hey You! How Are You Feeling? Stay Well & Strong!

:hug:

[alarcojon]

39. Feeling good, thanks

hugs back atcha

[Jacobin]

12. Dick Made Me Do it!!! Dick Made Me Do It!! WAAAAAAA

Colin Powell is beneath contempt.

[yorkiemommie1]

16. if he really cared about this country and its future

not to mention the future of the world, he should have taken a position and spoken out for the truth! a sound conscience would have demanded it, but his allegiances were elsewhere.

[calimary]

34. That would be my take on it.

The time for him to resign would have been BEFORE he went to the UN as the patsy for these assholes, rather than sacrifice his reputation to their powergrabbing and warmongering. Umm... and now he's looking for sympathy? cheney made me do it?

FUCK YOU, powell. You were used. And you allowed it. And funny enough, you were the one guy in this regime who had credibility. Looks like you squandered all YOUR political capital, too.

Man, colin powell went into this standing tall, with a sterling reputation and presidential murmurings wafting in the air around him. Now he's just one more broken brick on the rubble pile this cabal leaves behind. Proud of yourself, colin?

[Mad_Dem_X]

48. Exactly - he sold his soul

to BushCo. It's too late, General, the damage is done.

[RaRa]

17. A stretch, but

is it a crime to LIE to the UN? Isn't Powell admitting to as much?

[creeksneakers2]

18. If Powell knew all this

What did he tell the president? When? Why? Wasn't there a duty to inform the president?

[AndyTiedye]

21. and Why Did He LIE to Us and the World?

We know that Bush** lies every time he opens his mouth,
but a lot of people expected better from Powell.

Come to think of it, those are mostly the same people who
think McCain is OK, and a lot of them drank the
"compassionate conservative" kool-aid in 2000.
I guess it's all media hype after all.

[rodeodance]

37. Loyality overrides everything

[Voltaire99]

63. See Powell's experience covering up the My Lai massacre.

He's been a shill for reprehensible military action all his life.

[creeksneakers2]

82. Powell's dishonesty is well established

I'm most interested in getting something on GW Bush that the media might run with. Bush knew there were major problems with the intelligence. Somehow, what proof we have had on this hasn't been sexy enough for the media to cover. If we could get Powell to say he told Bush the intelligence was all wrong, that would have legs.

[springhill]

19. Is this any surprise?

I mean really, he is the REAL president.

[daleo]

20. Powell admits he knew all this

But still lied to the U.N.?

[JerseygirlCT]

22. Oh my eyes! That title! The pictures are so hard to take... nt

[cliss]

23. That's what happens when you try to lie to an

entire world.

Colon Bowel & Dick Cheney: "You can fool all the people (all 6 1/2 billion of them JUST THIS ONCE"

[FredScuttle]

25. Powell: Makes Uncle Tom look like Stokley Carmichael

Harry Belafonte hit it right on the nose...fuck this enabling, shuffling piece of shit. I have as much respect for Colin Powell as I did my last bowel movement.

[PurpleChez]

75. I wasn't sure about making the 'Uncle Tom' reference, so thanks!!

Not that I care about this lying toady but how humiliating must it have been to shuffle for Massa Bush?

[Skip Intro]

27. the intel wasn't flawed, it was faked

the niger assumptions were based on forgeries, right? - somebody created the forgeries...somebody plotted to decieve...

[wordpix]

41. and that someone works or worked for Cheney

[donkeyotay]

77. Exactly. It wasn't flawed; it was faked.

Look at the pattern of evidence. This wasn't an accident. This was a plan. The more one looks at Cheney's role in all of this... well, no wonder he has an 18% approval rating. In a year we'll look back and wonder how it was ever so high.

[oasis]

29. Powell's state dept. chief Col. Lawrence Wilkerson ripped Cheney today

on C-SPAN. Wilkerson's an excellent speaker, he almost had me feeling sypathetic towards Powell.

[0007]

33. bttft

[MissMillie]

36. November can't come soon enough

a Democratic congress is needed to investigate who knew what when.

Unfortunately, it may very well be that none of this stuff comes out for years. We can only hope that the next Democratic President rescinds Bush's executive order that sealed Presidential papers from the public (once again, thwarting legislative authority, checks and balances, etc.)

[npincus]

38. Powell's a f*cking whore... he should have QUIT and told America

the TRUTH.. that would have been the honorable thing to do.

[wordpix]

42. I agree. Powell is using the old Nazi argument, "I was following orders"

[shain from kane]

60. Powell is paid $$$$$$$$$$$$$ to follow orders. He's a whore. n/t

[noonwitch]

43. "Powell fingers Cheney" LOL for a headline

That's one sight I don't want to see.

[Mr. Mojo Risin]

49. I second that thought!

My mind is scarred.

[subterranean]

51. "Powell Fingers Dick" would have been better

[shain from kane]

61. Can't keep juggling those balls forever. Gravity is bound to take effect.

Dropping one by one.

[shain from kane]

67. "Powell Fingers Bush". I'm waiting. n/t

[subterranean]

71. Here you go...

http://www.insidebayarea.com/news/ci_3683815

[gauguin57]

44. If Zacarias Moussaoui can be punished for not telling us about 9/11 ...

... what can we do to Colin Powell for not telling us the Bush Admin. were a bunch of lying sacks of manure, getting us into an expensive war (in lives and dollars) -- futher pissing off the Muslim world at us -- based on information Powell KNEW KNEW KNEW was BULLSHIT!

[bdamomma]

46. cheney is the fueling the fire

cheney is the biggest problem. Cheney and Rumsfeld, they are running the show, and bushie is their poster boy. And Uncle Karl puppets bush.

[demo dutch]

52. Completely agree. * is completely relying on Cheney to run the show

and I daresay doesn't know (or cares to know) any details about anything, thus Cheney is getting away with murder (literally)

[swag]

50. Links to the primary source

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=911546

[Dr Fate]

53. Are any Top Democrats talking about this on TV today?

If not, why?

[Voltaire99]

65. Heh. Please.

Can't look weak to the NASCAR voters, you know. Got to keep pushing that "Stronger Murika"!

[Patchuli]

72. I'm still waiting for you to write them and find out!

Are you a freep in deep cover, Dr.? Do you participate in active politics? Do you ask "Top Democrats" any questions? Enquiring minds want to know...

[mnhtnbb]

57. Too little, too late, General

The time to speak up was years ago. He's just trying to clear his conscience. Maybe, just maybe, Powell isn't sleeping too well these days.

[shain from kane]

62. Another McNamara. n/t

[AntiFascist]

70. At least he has some remnant of a conscience...

who knows how deep the crimes go for the complete traitors at the top?

[Imalittleteapot]

58. A little late Colin.

You knowingly deceived the nation - the world. There was a time when you were respected. You join all of the * gang - no integrity.

:nopity:

[shain from kane]

68. Colin takes a dump a little too late. Constipated for 3 years. n/t

[Mnemosyne]

59. How many traitorous war criminals are we up to now sabra?

It must be getting to be a fairly large number, don't ya' think? filthy evil monsters.

:hi:

[judaspriestess]

64. Powell needs to follow his former daddies advice

Go fuck yourself. its a little too late. Is he feeling remorseful because of all the soldiers that were sent into harms way now?

Your bosses gave it to you real good......

[Rex]

66. Powell fingers Cheney while Bush and Rove watch.

Yeah I know...eww...sorry.

[boobooday]

76. Confirming the obvious

From the moment Billion Dollar Cheney chose himself as VP, it has been clear that he is the true root of the evil of this administration.

My music video about the Dark One:
http://billiondollarcheney.cf.huffingtonpost.com

[donkeyotay]

78. Cheney took on Dresser's asbestos liability and got the VP spot

You know Cheney wanted to run for prez himself, but got the bad news he was unelectable. So they got themselves the perfect sock puppet, and it was just a coincidence that Cheney, as the originator of the PNAC military renewal plans and military privatization, placed his co-signers in the puppet's cabinet. They said, "Don't worry, Junior, you just be presidential and we'll take care of the rest."

Cheney is ground zero.

[boobooday]

80. Succinct summation

You pretty much said it all.

He has been slithering his way up the politico-corporate ladder for decades, and finally got the opportunity to 'implement' his plans.

[Tight_rope]

79. Ole Dick is in the frying pan now. Fry that "DICK" up.

[Supersedeas]

84. time for the MSM Corporate Shills to go into full spin mode