He was a long-time City Council member, then a popular two-term mayor, and won a seat in the U.S. House last election. I e-mailed him about the Downing Street Memo.
Thank you for contacting me regarding the so-called "Downing Street Memo." I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
As you are aware, this document consists of the minutes of a secret meeting between senior British government officials, including Prime Minister Tony Blair. The document seemingly reveals that the United States and Great Britain knew of Iraq's relatively weak ability to use weapons of mass destruction and conspired to invade Iraq regardless.
The revelations of the Downing Street Memo are extremely troubling, and have serious ramifications for the integrity of the United States. The Bush Administration must now address the very serious questions raised by the memo. The Congress and the American people deserve to know exactly when President Bush and Prime Minister Blair agreed to invade Iraq and if there was any coordinated effort to manipulate intelligence and facts to justify going to war.
I, along Congressman Conyers and 87 of our colleagues, recently wrote to President Bush questioning him about the Downing Street Memo. I am hopeful that the President will promptly respond to our letter and the concerns raised therein in order to shed some light on the questionable rationales given for invading Iraq. Please know that I am continuing to monitor the developments surrounding the Downing Street Memo, and will continue working to hold the Administration accountable for its actions.
Again, thank you for contacting me. Please don't hesitate to contact me in the future if I may be of further assistance. Also, I encourage you to visit my website at
http://www.house.gov/cleaver, where you can sign up for my electronic newsletter and receive updates on my latest activities as your Representative.
Sincerely
Emanuel Cleaver, II
Member of Congress