The budget for the Iraq War is already more than $200 Billion withe no end in sight. The other costs for the war (lives, oil prices) are even more. One of the most interesting issues for historians will be how we got into this mess; and the evidence is mounting that this was a war that our President wanted to do since before he was first elected. It had nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction (WMD) or terroritsts.

Specifically: According to Paul O’Neill, Bush’s first Secretary of the Treasury, “From the very beginning, there was a conviction that Saddam Hussein was a bad person and that he needed to go,” says O’Neill, who adds that going after Saddam was topic “A” 10 days after the inauguration. The excuse came on September 11, 2001. Specific planning to invade Iraq began in ernest only 5 hours after the first plane hit the World Trade Center, before we even knew who was behind it. When we later discovered who was really behind it, the Bush administration had to make up a new excuse: nuclear weapons and other WMD. In July of 2002, long before the UN weapons inspectors had submitted their report or the UN debates had begun, the administration had already made the decision to go war. While the UN was debating and while Condoleezza Rice was telling the world that we wanted the Iraq situation to be resolved peacefully, the administration was making detailed war plans with the British. These were not contingency plans, these were actions plans. The documents make it clear the UN debates were viewed as irrelevant.

In short, the adminstration lied to the UN and to the American people, as did Tony Blair to the British. The fascinating question will be why. One theory is that it was personal. Sadaam tried to kill President Bush’s father. I’d be mad if someone tried to kill my dad. How ironic would it be if the Iraq War was the result of personal hurt and anger. But the irony doesn’t stop here. It is possible that Sadaam had nothing to do with the threat to the President’s father. The noted journalist Seymour Hersh, who broke the Abu Ghraib scandal, isn’t so sure. Wouldn’t that be the classic American story: a Texas family feud, built on a false premise, turns into a war that costs our country hundreds of billions and turns the world against us. And then we re-elected him.

Technorati Tags: Iraq War, George Bush

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