The First Article Of Impeachment

It reads like a brief in support of an article of impeachment. From today's New York Times:

"On Sept. 13, The Times made the first public mention of the [aluminum] tubes debate in the sixth paragraph of an article on Page A13. In it an unidentified senior administration official dismissed the debate as a "footnote, not a split." Citing another unidentified administration official, the story reported that the "best technical experts and nuclear scientists at laboratories like Oak Ridge supported the C.I.A. assessments."

"As a senior Oak Ridge official pointed out to the Intelligence Committee, "the vast majority of scientists and nuclear experts" in the Energy Department's laboratories in fact disagreed with the agency. But on Sept. 13, the day the article appeared, the Energy Department sent a directive forbidding employees from discussing the subject with reporters."

There were two assessments. One was crafted to Administration specifications and conveniently reached the Administration's desired conclusion. The other assessment contradicted the Administration's assessment and dismantled the Administration's case with devastating efficiency. The contrary assessment was confirmed on January 10, 2003 when U.N. weapons inspectors found the very same variety of tubes in Iraqi rockets - the likely intended use cited by the contrary assessment. The Administration nonetheless continued to rely on the discredited assessment and took us to war. The contrary, and accurate, assessment was muzzled.

The Administration will explain to us that there are always different analyses, different assessments. The Administration will imply that the choice of one or the other is arbitrary, and that there is no basis for judging the relative merits of two widely varying assessments. The Administration will not acknowledge that one assessment was objectively flawed.

Finally, the Administration will not acknowledge that yet again the assessment they relied upon was wrong, was never credible, was denounced by the nation's foremost experts and, all in all, constituted another fraud perpetrated on the American people.

I urge everyone to read the NYT article. A heinous crime has been committed, and we (as well the Iraqi people) are all victims.