Twenty Big Bush Debate Lies
edited by Jerry Politex
1. "Bush hailed the coming presidential election in Afghanistan, saying that the fact that 10 million people had registered to vote was a "phenomenal statistic." But Human Rights Watch this week said that figure was inaccurate because of the multiple registrations of many voters. In a lengthy report, the respected organization also documented how human rights abuses are fueling a pervasive atmosphere of repression and fear in many parts of the country, with voters in those areas having little faith in the secrecy of the balloting and often facing threats and bribes from militia factions." (WP, 10/1/04)
2. "On North Korea, Bush charged that Kerry's proposal to have direct talks with that country would end the six-nation diplomacy that the administration has pursued over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. Kerry has said he would continue the six-party talks as well. Bush said direct talks with North Korea would drive away China, a key player in the negotiations. But each of the other four countries in the talks has held direct talks with North Korea during the six-party process -- and China has repeatedly asked the Bush administration to talk directly with North Korea. Moreover, the Bush administration has talked directly with North Korean diplomats on the sidelines of the six-party talks, and Secretary of State Colin L. Powell met with his North Korean counterpart over the summer." (WP, 10/1/04)
3. "In a fierce debate over nuclear proliferation, Bush asserted: "Libya has disarmed. The A.Q. Khan network has been brought to justice." He was referring to a nuclear smuggling ring based in Pakistan. But many experts also credit the patient diplomacy started in the Clinton administration for persuading Libya to cooperate. Moreover, Khan, a national hero in Pakistan, was pardoned by President Pervez Musharraf, and not a single person involved in his network has been prosecuted anywhere. Yesterday, in fact, the International Atomic Energy Agency complained that it had been prevented from interviewing Khan." (WP, 10/01/04)
4. "Bush said he has increased spending on curbing nuclear proliferation by "about 35 percent" since he took office. But in his first budget, he proposed a 13 percent cut -- about $116 million -- and much of the increases since then have been added by Congress." (WP, 10/1/04)
5. "Bush said "Saddam Hussein had no intention of disarming." Yet Iraq asserted in its filing with the United Nations in December 2002 that it had no such weapons, and none has been found. The Bush administration invaded Iraq because it believed Hussein was concealing stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction. Some post-invasion reports have argued that Hussein retained the capability to restart his weapons programs, but many experts consider that doubtful as long as he remained under U.N. sanctions and inspections." (WP, 10/1/04)
6. "Bush also overstated the case when he corrected Kerry by saying that the senator forgot to mention that Poland supplied forces when the invasion began. Kerry said there were three countries that did -- Britain, Australia and the United States -- and Bush said, "actually he forgot Poland." Poland later supplied troops and commanded a zone in Iraq. But, except for a few commandos, Polish troops were not part of the original ground invasion." (WP, 10/1/04)
7. " As part of his case that Kerry has sent mixed messages, Bush asserted that "he voted against the $87 billion supplemental to provide equipment for our troops, and then said he actually did vote for it before he voted against it." While Bush meant it as a jab, this was an accurate description of the Senate process. Kerry supported a different version of the bill, which was opposed by the administration. At the time, many Republicans were uncomfortable with the administration's plans and the White House had to threaten a veto against the congressional version to bring reluctant lawmakers in line. In a floor statement explaining his vote, Kerry said he favored the $67 billion for the troops on the ground, but he faulted the administration's $20 billion request for reconstruction." (WP, 10/1/04)
8. "Bush cited as a sign of progress in Iraq that the US is "spending reconstruction money," when in fact the slow pace of spending has become a major problem for US officials. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage testified to a House Appropriations subcommittee Sept. 24 that only $1.2 billion in reconstruction money had actually been spent so far , out of the total of $18 billion that was appropriated last December in "emergency" funds for Iraq and Afghanistan. (FC, 10/01/04)
9. "Bush also said "100,000 troops" and other Iraqi security personnel have been trained to date. That's the official figure, but the President failed to mention that many trainees have received nothing more than a three-week course in police procedures -- what Armitage referred to as "shake-and-bake" forces. Only 8,000 of the total are police who have received a full eight-week course of training." (FC, 10/1/04)
10. "The President misquoted Kerry's position on how quickly troops might be withdrawn from Iraq. Bush claimed Kerry once said "I'll have them out of there in six months," which is false. Kerry complained, "he's misled us again." What Kerry actually said was that he believed he could "significantly reduce" US troop levels in Iraq within six months of taking office -- not at all the same thing as having all troops "out of there." (FC, 10/1/04)
11. "The President said twice that "75 percent" of al Qaeda leaders have been "brought to justice." But as The Associated Press reported Oct. 1, Bush was referring to the deaths or arrests of 75 percent of bin Laden's network at the time of the September 11 attacks -- not those who are running the terrorist organization today. The AP also reported that the CIA said earlier in the year two-thirds of those leaders are gone; at his acceptance speech in September, Bush increased his count to three-fourths based on unreleased intelligence data.Furthermore, the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies reported May 25 that the occupation of Iraq has helped al Qaeda recruit more members. The institute quoted "conservative" intelligence estimates as saying that al Qaeda has 18,000 potential operatives and is present in more than 60 countries." (FC, 10/1/04)
12. "The president suggested that the war in Iraq was connected to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, saying, "The enemy attacked us." The federal Sept. 11 commission, however, said that so far, it found no evidence "indicating that Iraq cooperated with al-Qaida in developing or carrying out any attacks against the United States." In addition, Defense Intelligence Agency analysts concluded in several papers in 2002 that even if Iraq possessed chemical or biological weapons, it was unlikely to give them to al-Qaida or other terrorist groups." (KR, 10/1/04)
13. "Kerry was correct that while Bush promised he'd plan carefully for a war in Iraq, his administration ignored a huge State Department "Future of Iraq" project, ignored intelligence warnings that the country could descend into chaos and failed to include enough troops to secure the country's borders, nuclear plants and ammunition dumps. Kerry also was right that the only government building in Baghdad that was guarded by American troops after the city fell was the oil ministry." (KR, 10/1/04)
14. "Bush's main line of attack all evening was his charge that Kerry keeps changing positions on Iraq. In fact, while Kerry admitted Thursday night that he hasn't always expressed himself clearly, he's never backed away from his vote authorizing the war and he's always said that Bush should have sought more international help. When he voted for the war resolution in October 2002, Kerry made it clear that he favored a "multilateral effort" if diplomacy failed." (KR, 10/1/04)
15. "The Claim: The difficulties facing the U.S. in Iraq are a product of foreign terrorists showing up to fight the America there.
Reality Check: The U.S. military on the ground says that the overwhelming majority of the insurgents fighting the U.S. in Iraq are Iraqis, not foreigners." (TIME, 10/1/04)
16. "The Claim: President Bush says he tried diplomacy in Iraq, and went to war only when it failed.
Reality Check: Numerous accounts from within the U.S. and allied governments suggest the Bush Administration had decided to invade Iraq even before it went to the UN in the fall of 2002, and had gone back to the international body only under pressure from moderates in its own ranks and from Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair. The termination of the UN inspection process had nothing to do with its progress; it was based primarily on the window of opportunity for an invasion presented by the seasonal calendar." (TIME, 10/1/04)
17. "The Claim: Saddam Hussein would have grown stronger had the invasion not occurred. Reality Check: The decrepit state of the Iraqi military, its negligible pursuit of prohibited weapons, and the widespread internal rot of the regime that emerged after it collapsed showed that, in fact, containment had succeeded in weakening Saddam Hussein although an enormous cost to Iraq's civilian population." (TIME, 10/1/04)
18. " The Claim: A free Iraq will help secure Israel. Reality Check: The bulk of Iraq's Arab majority, both Sunni and Shiite, hold the same hostile view of Israel as their brethren throughout the Arab world. While elements of one particular faction of the formerly exiled opposition (Ahmed Chalabi's Iraqi National Congress) have suggested that ties with Israel could be established, there's no evidence to support the claim that an Iraqi government reflective of the popular will would be any warmer toward Israel than any of its neighbors." (TIME, 10/1/04)
19. " The Claim: We have 30 nations in our coalition; our coalition is strong. Reality Check: There isn't a single Arab country in the coalition, in contrast to the wide Arab participation in the Gulf War. And the U.S. and Britain between them provided more than 90 percent of the troops. Moreover, eight of the countries that initially joined the U.S. have since pulled out their soldiers, and more are expected to follow. Efforts to persuade Muslim countries to send troops have foundered." (TIME, 10/1/04) 20. "Striving for emotional effect rather than precision, he seemed at times to conflate Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and the terrorists who attacked a Russian school into a single adversary." (BDC, 10/1/04)
edited by Jerry Politex
1. "Bush hailed the coming presidential election in Afghanistan, saying that the fact that 10 million people had registered to vote was a "phenomenal statistic." But Human Rights Watch this week said that figure was inaccurate because of the multiple registrations of many voters. In a lengthy report, the respected organization also documented how human rights abuses are fueling a pervasive atmosphere of repression and fear in many parts of the country, with voters in those areas having little faith in the secrecy of the balloting and often facing threats and bribes from militia factions." (WP, 10/1/04)
2. "On North Korea, Bush charged that Kerry's proposal to have direct talks with that country would end the six-nation diplomacy that the administration has pursued over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. Kerry has said he would continue the six-party talks as well. Bush said direct talks with North Korea would drive away China, a key player in the negotiations. But each of the other four countries in the talks has held direct talks with North Korea during the six-party process -- and China has repeatedly asked the Bush administration to talk directly with North Korea. Moreover, the Bush administration has talked directly with North Korean diplomats on the sidelines of the six-party talks, and Secretary of State Colin L. Powell met with his North Korean counterpart over the summer." (WP, 10/1/04)
3. "In a fierce debate over nuclear proliferation, Bush asserted: "Libya has disarmed. The A.Q. Khan network has been brought to justice." He was referring to a nuclear smuggling ring based in Pakistan. But many experts also credit the patient diplomacy started in the Clinton administration for persuading Libya to cooperate. Moreover, Khan, a national hero in Pakistan, was pardoned by President Pervez Musharraf, and not a single person involved in his network has been prosecuted anywhere. Yesterday, in fact, the International Atomic Energy Agency complained that it had been prevented from interviewing Khan." (WP, 10/01/04)
4. "Bush said he has increased spending on curbing nuclear proliferation by "about 35 percent" since he took office. But in his first budget, he proposed a 13 percent cut -- about $116 million -- and much of the increases since then have been added by Congress." (WP, 10/1/04)
5. "Bush said "Saddam Hussein had no intention of disarming." Yet Iraq asserted in its filing with the United Nations in December 2002 that it had no such weapons, and none has been found. The Bush administration invaded Iraq because it believed Hussein was concealing stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction. Some post-invasion reports have argued that Hussein retained the capability to restart his weapons programs, but many experts consider that doubtful as long as he remained under U.N. sanctions and inspections." (WP, 10/1/04)
6. "Bush also overstated the case when he corrected Kerry by saying that the senator forgot to mention that Poland supplied forces when the invasion began. Kerry said there were three countries that did -- Britain, Australia and the United States -- and Bush said, "actually he forgot Poland." Poland later supplied troops and commanded a zone in Iraq. But, except for a few commandos, Polish troops were not part of the original ground invasion." (WP, 10/1/04)
7. " As part of his case that Kerry has sent mixed messages, Bush asserted that "he voted against the $87 billion supplemental to provide equipment for our troops, and then said he actually did vote for it before he voted against it." While Bush meant it as a jab, this was an accurate description of the Senate process. Kerry supported a different version of the bill, which was opposed by the administration. At the time, many Republicans were uncomfortable with the administration's plans and the White House had to threaten a veto against the congressional version to bring reluctant lawmakers in line. In a floor statement explaining his vote, Kerry said he favored the $67 billion for the troops on the ground, but he faulted the administration's $20 billion request for reconstruction." (WP, 10/1/04)
8. "Bush cited as a sign of progress in Iraq that the US is "spending reconstruction money," when in fact the slow pace of spending has become a major problem for US officials. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage testified to a House Appropriations subcommittee Sept. 24 that only $1.2 billion in reconstruction money had actually been spent so far , out of the total of $18 billion that was appropriated last December in "emergency" funds for Iraq and Afghanistan. (FC, 10/01/04)
9. "Bush also said "100,000 troops" and other Iraqi security personnel have been trained to date. That's the official figure, but the President failed to mention that many trainees have received nothing more than a three-week course in police procedures -- what Armitage referred to as "shake-and-bake" forces. Only 8,000 of the total are police who have received a full eight-week course of training." (FC, 10/1/04)
10. "The President misquoted Kerry's position on how quickly troops might be withdrawn from Iraq. Bush claimed Kerry once said "I'll have them out of there in six months," which is false. Kerry complained, "he's misled us again." What Kerry actually said was that he believed he could "significantly reduce" US troop levels in Iraq within six months of taking office -- not at all the same thing as having all troops "out of there." (FC, 10/1/04)
11. "The President said twice that "75 percent" of al Qaeda leaders have been "brought to justice." But as The Associated Press reported Oct. 1, Bush was referring to the deaths or arrests of 75 percent of bin Laden's network at the time of the September 11 attacks -- not those who are running the terrorist organization today. The AP also reported that the CIA said earlier in the year two-thirds of those leaders are gone; at his acceptance speech in September, Bush increased his count to three-fourths based on unreleased intelligence data.Furthermore, the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies reported May 25 that the occupation of Iraq has helped al Qaeda recruit more members. The institute quoted "conservative" intelligence estimates as saying that al Qaeda has 18,000 potential operatives and is present in more than 60 countries." (FC, 10/1/04)
12. "The president suggested that the war in Iraq was connected to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, saying, "The enemy attacked us." The federal Sept. 11 commission, however, said that so far, it found no evidence "indicating that Iraq cooperated with al-Qaida in developing or carrying out any attacks against the United States." In addition, Defense Intelligence Agency analysts concluded in several papers in 2002 that even if Iraq possessed chemical or biological weapons, it was unlikely to give them to al-Qaida or other terrorist groups." (KR, 10/1/04)
13. "Kerry was correct that while Bush promised he'd plan carefully for a war in Iraq, his administration ignored a huge State Department "Future of Iraq" project, ignored intelligence warnings that the country could descend into chaos and failed to include enough troops to secure the country's borders, nuclear plants and ammunition dumps. Kerry also was right that the only government building in Baghdad that was guarded by American troops after the city fell was the oil ministry." (KR, 10/1/04)
14. "Bush's main line of attack all evening was his charge that Kerry keeps changing positions on Iraq. In fact, while Kerry admitted Thursday night that he hasn't always expressed himself clearly, he's never backed away from his vote authorizing the war and he's always said that Bush should have sought more international help. When he voted for the war resolution in October 2002, Kerry made it clear that he favored a "multilateral effort" if diplomacy failed." (KR, 10/1/04)
15. "The Claim: The difficulties facing the U.S. in Iraq are a product of foreign terrorists showing up to fight the America there.
Reality Check: The U.S. military on the ground says that the overwhelming majority of the insurgents fighting the U.S. in Iraq are Iraqis, not foreigners." (TIME, 10/1/04)
16. "The Claim: President Bush says he tried diplomacy in Iraq, and went to war only when it failed.
Reality Check: Numerous accounts from within the U.S. and allied governments suggest the Bush Administration had decided to invade Iraq even before it went to the UN in the fall of 2002, and had gone back to the international body only under pressure from moderates in its own ranks and from Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair. The termination of the UN inspection process had nothing to do with its progress; it was based primarily on the window of opportunity for an invasion presented by the seasonal calendar." (TIME, 10/1/04)
17. "The Claim: Saddam Hussein would have grown stronger had the invasion not occurred. Reality Check: The decrepit state of the Iraqi military, its negligible pursuit of prohibited weapons, and the widespread internal rot of the regime that emerged after it collapsed showed that, in fact, containment had succeeded in weakening Saddam Hussein although an enormous cost to Iraq's civilian population." (TIME, 10/1/04)
18. " The Claim: A free Iraq will help secure Israel. Reality Check: The bulk of Iraq's Arab majority, both Sunni and Shiite, hold the same hostile view of Israel as their brethren throughout the Arab world. While elements of one particular faction of the formerly exiled opposition (Ahmed Chalabi's Iraqi National Congress) have suggested that ties with Israel could be established, there's no evidence to support the claim that an Iraqi government reflective of the popular will would be any warmer toward Israel than any of its neighbors." (TIME, 10/1/04)
19. " The Claim: We have 30 nations in our coalition; our coalition is strong. Reality Check: There isn't a single Arab country in the coalition, in contrast to the wide Arab participation in the Gulf War. And the U.S. and Britain between them provided more than 90 percent of the troops. Moreover, eight of the countries that initially joined the U.S. have since pulled out their soldiers, and more are expected to follow. Efforts to persuade Muslim countries to send troops have foundered." (TIME, 10/1/04) 20. "Striving for emotional effect rather than precision, he seemed at times to conflate Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and the terrorists who attacked a Russian school into a single adversary." (BDC, 10/1/04)
