Not another F#@cking Book

Condoleezza Rice told Wolf Blitzer :

we all thought that the intelligence case was strong. To the degree that there was an intelligence problem here, it was not just an intelligence problem with George Tenet. It was not just an intelligence problem with U.S. intelligence.

It was an intelligence problem worldwide. We all thought -- including U.N. inspectors -- that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. So there's no blame here of anyone.

Why does he let her say that without contradicting her? Why? It's pretty easy to show that it's not true. For instance, in February 2003 Mohammed el-Baradei of the IAEA said:

We have to date found no evidence of ongoing prohibited nuclear or nuclear related activities in Iraq. ... The IAEA's experience in nuclear verification shows that it is possible, particularly with an intrusive verification system, to assess the presence or absence of a nuclear weapons program in a State even without the full cooperation of the inspected state.

In January 2003 the UN Inspectors Condi refers to actually said what they'd found was "zilch".

But Wolf doesn't call her on it. Just like he doesn't call her on saying, when asked why she doesn't want to testify before Congress:

There is a constitutional issue that the White House and we are concerned about, which is that this was in my role as a White House staff aide to the president. There is a separation of powers. And the compellance of White House aides to the president, close advisers to the president to testify before Congress is a constitutional issue.

Gosh - other National Security Advisors have managed to do it. Why doesn't Wolf mention Henry Kissinger, Brent Scowcroft and Zbigniew Brzezinski? Heck, why doesn't he just ask her since when does this administration worry about the Constitution?

She went on to say:

But, Wolf, let me be very clear. It's not as if these questions haven't been answered. They were answered not just when I was confirmed, but they were also answered in a bipartisan commission report by Lawrence Silberman and Chuck Robb.

Answered? Sure - in the "I said something after you asked the question" meaning of "answer". In the Alberto Gonzales "I don't recall remembering" sense of "answer". That's not good enough.

But here's the cherry on top. Here's the absolute most arrogant and despicable thing she said.

Look, not everything went right. This is a very difficult circumstance. There were some things that went right and some things that went wrong. And you know what, we'll have a chance to look at that in history. And I will have a chance to reflect on that when I have a chance to write my book. (laughter)

No.

Goddammit, no.

We need to "look at that" now. And you know why, Condi?

It's because you're still in office. You and this administration are still fucking up. And we need to look now at why that happens.

Not in another six years, when you, like your esteemed colleagues Tenet and Bremer and the rest, have a chance to make millions by producing some self-serving book that will make you the lone Cassandra - though she at least told people.

We cannot afford to wait till then, for thousands more dead Americans, for tens or hundreds of thousands more dead Iraqis, for more loss of American prestige and influence and morality.

And, oh yeah: memo to Wolf - don't laugh with these people. They are not funny - they are terrifying.