CNN’s Jack Cafferty, on Wednesday’s "The Situation Room," unsurprisingly heralded the study by the Center for Public Integrity that Bush Administration officials made hundreds of false statements in the lead-up to the Iraq war. He did not mention, however, the Center’s funding by various left-wing individuals and foundations, most notably George Soros.
Cafferty, who commented on the study during his regular "Cafferty File" segment eight minutes into the 4 pm Eastern hour of the CNN program, bluntly referred to the supposed "false statements" made by these officials as "lies." He also repeated a line from the study that the "lies" "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses." With that last phrase, one cannot doubt the political leanings of these "nonprofit journalism groups," as Cafferty referred to them.
Before he read his "Question of the Hour," Cafferty lamented the fact that American troops were still in Iraq and that thousands of them had died. "President Bush said that at the time he and other officials made these statements, the U.S. intelligence community and other nations thought Iraq had WMD. But they didn’t. And yet, we’re still there, and almost 4,000 of our troops are dead because of it."
At the end of the hour, when Cafferty read some of the viewers’ answers to his question, he did read one response from a person named Vinny that took him to task not mentioning the Center for Public Integrity by name in his segment and its connection to George Soros.
The full transcript of the "Cafferty File" segment from Wednesday’s "The Situation Room":
JACK CAFFERTY: President Bush and top administration officials publicly made 935 false statements -- that's a polite way to say lies -- about the risk posed by Iraq in the two years following 9/11, according to a study done by two nonprofit journalism groups. The study found President Bush led the pack with 260 lies. But he wasn’t alone. Other officials include: Vice President Cheney, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice (before she got promoted), and former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, among others. The study points to at least 532 times where officials said Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or was trying to get them or had links to al Qaeda. They say the statements 'were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses.'
The White House called the study 'flawed,' and repeated the administration’s position that the world community saw Saddam Hussein as a threat. President Bush said that at the time he and other officials made these statements, the U.S. intelligence community and other nations thought Iraq had WMD. But they didn’t. And yet, we’re still there, and almost 4,000 of our troops are dead because of it.
Here’s the question: What do you make of a study that shows President Bush and his top aides made 935 false statements about the threat from Iraq in the two years following 9/11? Go to cnn.com/caffertyfile where you can post a comment on my new blog.
—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Two possibilities
January 23, 2008 - 18:16 ET by KC MulvilleEither:
If he doesn't know about the connection, he's a poor journalist. If he does know about the connection, either he thinks that Soros is an unbiased critic, or that Soros' bias is OK.
The Bush Administration has long said that the intelligence was flawed, but that they were reacting to the best information that they had available. They also said, frequently, that they never claimed that there was any hard evidence that Saddam was supporting al-Qaeda. They've also said that the presence of WMDs was not the sole reason to invade and get rid of Saddam. Not surprisingly, the media never discusses those other issues.
No surprise there, he also
January 23, 2008 - 18:28 ET by fitzfongNo surprise there, he also ignores the Clinton connection to his own network.
Soros had to do a "study"
January 23, 2008 - 18:41 ET by goldbarSoros had to do a "study" to find out if Bush lied? I guess he is more stupid than I thought.
Trollclown?
January 24, 2008 - 09:25 ET by Sua Sponte 75Out from the rocks they came....
"You're either part of the solution or part of the problem"
This started as an AP story
January 23, 2008 - 18:52 ET by timotheand Yahoo ran with it as well. They had this story up all day today with no mention of George Soros and no hedge words such as "claimed" "accused" "inferred" etc.
This one really pisses me off because there is no integrity whatsoever at the "Center for Public Integrity". Yet the media just ran with it as if it were rock solid journalism.
Let's count the false
January 23, 2008 - 18:54 ET by the strugglerLet's count the false statements uttered by this jack-ass(no pun intended).
From the liberal glossary:
January 23, 2008 - 19:06 ET by c5thenLie - a statement uttered by a conservative that later (sometimes years later) turns out to be wrong.
Bald-faced lie - A statement uttered by a conservative that is agreed with by almost all liberals that later turns out to be wrong.
The day that "politician" became a career choice is the day we started losing the Republic. Let's get it back! Alan Keyes '08.
Jack is simply an old man
January 23, 2008 - 19:09 ET by Captain RepusJack is simply an old man who can't deal with growing old and grumpy.
Of course he is aware of Soro's influence in this phony study, but you can hardly expect a democrat to kill the messenger, unless of course he is driving his caddy on the streets of Manhattan.
Well, well, well...
January 23, 2008 - 19:26 ET by SupermanOn Jack Cafferty's blog where he alleges that anybody can post a message, there is not one mention of George Soros. Could it be that Jack is taking a page out of Daily Kos' playbook and censoring posts that don't jive with his partisan ideology?
Hey Jack, Smoke This
January 23, 2008 - 19:41 ET by Del Dolemonte"One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line." --President Bill Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998
"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program." --President Bill Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998
"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face." --Madeline Albright, Feb 18, 1998
"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983." --Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998
"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs." Letter to President Clinton, signed by: -- Democratic Senators Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others, Oct. 9, 1998
"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process." -Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998
"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies." -- Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10, 1999
"There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies." Letter to President Bush, Signed by: -- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), and others, Dec 5, 2001
"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and th! e means of delivering them." -- Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002
"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country." -- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002
"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power." -- Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002
"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction." -- Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002
"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..." -- Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002
"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force -- if necessary -- to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security." -- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002
"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ... We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction." -- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002
"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do" -- Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002
"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members ... It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons." -- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002
"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction." -- Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002
"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation ... And now he is miscalculating America's response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction ... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real..." -- Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003
see the problem is that all
January 23, 2008 - 20:10 ET by red_dragon311see the problem is that all those people made those statements off of Bush's lies.....yes Bush lied about WMD's 10 years ago. he's such an evil genius he planned the Iraq war even before Clinton was in office.
and then he stole the 2000 election just so he could carry out his evil plan.
I still love how he is the dumbest evil genius on earth,
"Get off the phone you big dope!!!!!!!!!!" Mark Levin
I like how Cafferty passes
January 23, 2008 - 20:52 ET by LighthouseJI like how Cafferty passes cynical leftist letters off as the proletariat. I think we're just as cynical as Caffertys' letter writers, just not as massively misinformed. I was talking about how insecure or unwilling people are to put their political beliefs to scrutiny and possibly come up with their own thoughts. I think if everyone thought for themselves rather than blindly subscribing to one of the two popular schools of thought, we'd have more varied political parties like the old days.
"Boats are safe in the harbor, but that's not what they're made for." -- Maritime quote
Jack Cafferty - A bit nutty, but he hates Bush so CNN loves him!
January 23, 2008 - 21:01 ET by Free StinkerJack Cafferty - A bit nutty, but he hates Bush so CNN loves him!
Jack - I understand your network has people (interns?) checking out these right wing blogs so don;t say we didn't educate you!
Hat Tip to Chris Donohoe, Sua Sponte 75, NL207, dahliatravers, Mean Gene Dr. Love, and SFCMAC for some descriptions/links.
I. Saddam was known to have WMD and used it in at least 3 separate situations.
II. There is a long list of WMD found in Iraq
III. Banned Weapons
IV. Saddam Hussein had a History of Aggression, attacking 6 other nations.
V. Terrorists have been found in Iraq & there were numerous associations between Iraq & terrorists
VI. Violation of Gulf War Surrender Terms
VII. Other Casus Belli
Finally, we have this insightful quote from The Russian business weekly Itogi:
"Even if Colin Powell had presented the UN with an atomic bomb
confiscated from Saddam, the Europeans would have been unlikely to
agree to start a war."
_____________________________________________
Newsbusters. Log on and find out What the heck is so yummy over here!
Jack Cafferty
January 23, 2008 - 21:36 ET by drillanwrCNN's answer to MSNBC's Keith Olbermann ... sans hair and eye glasses ... and slick suit ... and Ex-lax
Right on the money
January 23, 2008 - 22:04 ET by Superman"CNN's answer to MSNBC's Keith Olbermann"
Keith just spent an entire segment on the same exact story. You were right. Jack Cafferty is CNN's Keith Olbermann.
I know Keith Olbermann and...
January 24, 2008 - 10:27 ET by PawpawNI know Keith Olbermann and Jack Cafferty is no Keith Olbermann!! Each is their own worst enemy!
Tell us again what you
January 23, 2008 - 21:40 ET by blingbling65Tell us again what you think of Clinton???
Do you think he is a good man? an honest man?
Yet you feel comfortable quoting him about Iraq???
Clinton maybe a world class bullsh!t artist, but he wasn't the idiot who took us into an endless war in Iraq, Tripling the national debt that has led to the collapse of the dollar which resulting inflation pressures are driving this country into a recession.
Maybe you should find a quote of Clinton's about balancing the federal budget, giving us a budget surplus which helped drive this country through the largest economic expansion in our history?
Maybe
January 24, 2008 - 09:10 ET by cvgbuckeyeyou should try rotating some different drugs that will get you out from under clinton's desk;;;;;;;or just shove monica out of your way!
Trollclown Pt 2?
January 24, 2008 - 09:27 ET by Sua Sponte 75Guess you weren't paying attention much during his presidency....
"You're either part of the solution or part of the problem"
Hey Jack C....
January 24, 2008 - 10:36 ET by Airforce_5_OWill you ever say the same about Murta? How about Harry Reid? John Kerry?
No you won't because see can't see past your BDS (Bush Derangement Syndrome).