And Here's what some Democrats said before Bush was even in office:
Madeleine Albright, February 1st, 1998 -- "We must stop Saddam from ever again jeopardizing the stability and the security of his neighbors with weapons of mass destruction."
Madeleine Albright, February 18, 1998 -- Iraq is a long way from Ohio, 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, and it is a threat against which we must and will stand firm.
Madeleine Albright, February 18, 1998 -- "No one has done what Saddam Hussein has done, or is thinking of doing. He is producing weapons of mass destruction, and he is qualitatively and quantitatively different from other dictators."
Madeleine Albright, November 10, 1999 -- "Hussein has chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies."
Sandy Berger, Clinton national security advisor, February 18th, 1998 -- He will rebuild his arsenal of weapons of mass destruction. And someday, some way, I am certain, he will use that arsenal again, as he has ten times since 1983.
Bill Clinton, February 17th, 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."
Bill Clinton, February 17, 1998 -- "We have to defend our future from these predators of the 21st Century.... They will be all the more lethal if we allow them to build arsenals of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. We simply cannot allow that to happen. There is no more clear example of this threat than Saddam Hussein."
Bill Clinton, February 17, 1998 -- "His regime threatens the safety of his people, the stability of his region, and the security of all the rest of us.
What if he fails to comply, and we fail to act, or we take some ambiguous third route which gives him yet more opportunities to develop this program of weapons of mass destruction and continue to press for the release of the sanctions and continue to ignore the solemn commitments that he made?
Well, he will conclude that the international community has lost its will. He will then conclude that he can go right on and do more to rebuild an arsenal of devastating destruction.
And some day, some way, I guarantee you, he'll use the arsenal."
Bill Clinton, December 16, 1998 -- "Earlier today I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces. Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors,"
Bill Clinton, December 16, 1998 -- "The best way to end that threat once and for all is with a new Iraqi government -- a government ready to live in peace with its neighbors, a government that respects the rights of its people.”
Tom Daschle, February 11, 1998 -- "The (Clinton) administration has said, 'Look, we have exhausted virtually our diplomatic effort to get the Iraqis to comply with their own agreements and with international law. Given that, what other option is there but to force them to do so?' That's what they're saying. This is the key question. And the answer is we don't have another option. We have got to force them to comply, and we are doing so militarily."
Howard Dean, January 31, 1998 -- Iraq is an international outlaw. I'm not sure China is one, but I'm quite sure Iran and Iraq are.
Dick Durbin, September 30, 1999 -- "One of the most compelling threats we in this country face today is the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Threat assessments regularly warn us of the possibility that North Korea, Iran, Iraq, or some other nation may acquire or develop nuclear weapons."
Al Gore, December 16, 1998 -- "[i]f you allow someone like Saddam Hussein to get nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, chemical weapons, biological weapons, how many people is he going to kill with such weapons? He has already demonstrated a willingness to use such weapons..."
John Kerry, February 23, 1998 -- "Saddam Hussein has already used these weapons and has made it clear that he has the intent to continue to try, by virtue of his duplicity and secrecy, to continue to do so. That is a threat to the stability of the Middle East. It is a threat with respect to the potential of terrorist activities on a global basis. It is a threat even to regions near but not exactly in the Middle East."
Nancy Pelosi, December 16th, 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."
Bill Richardson, May 29, 1998 -- "The threat of nuclear proliferation is one of the big challenges that we have now, especially by states that have nuclear weapons, outlaw states like Iraq."
"It should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime."
Iraq Liberation Act of 1998
105th Congress, 2nd Session
Sponsored by Bob Kerrey, John McCain, and Joseph Lieberman, and signed into law by President Clinton
"We urge you, after consulting with Congress and consistent with the US 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."
That from a letter to President Clinton signed by Senators Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others, October 9th, 1998
Now, did Bush lie to them all while he was governor of Texas? Is that why this was on the table before he was in office? You see, DickandTracy, every single reason Bush presented for going into Iraq and eliminating that threat was proposed BY DEMOCRATS BEFORE BUSH WAS EVEN A CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT!!
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