Daily Kos

Woodward Book Alleges Secret Iraq War Plan

by surfbird007

Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 06:56:24 AM PDT

Everyone who was annoyed (at the very least) by the non-critical, pro-Bush stance taken by Bob Woodward in his last book, should be pleased to see that early speculation about his new book being much tougher, and in fact potentially detrimental to the Bush administration, was likely correct. From the AP

WASHINGTON - President Bush secretly ordered a war plan drawn up against Iraq  less than two months after U.S. forces attacked Afghanistan and was so worried the decision would cause a furor he did not tell everyone on his national security team, says a new book on his Iraq policy.

Bush feared that if news got out about the Iraq plan as U.S. forces were fighting another conflict, people would think he was too eager for war, journalist Bob Woodward writes in "Plan of Attack," a behind-the-scenes account of the 16 months leading to the Iraq invasion.

The Associated Press obtained a copy of the book, which will be available in book stores next week.

"I knew what would happen if people thought we were developing a potential war plan for Iraq," Bush is quoted as telling Woodward. "It was such a high-stakes moment and ... it would look like that I was anxious to go to war. And I'm not anxious to go to war."

I, for one, think it's about time Woodward made up for his past transgressions.

The full story is available at: http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ_WOODWARD_BOOK?SITE=APWEB&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLA TE=DEFAULT
 

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  •  Appearances appearances . . . (none / 0)

    " . . . it would look like that I was anxious to go to war. And I'm not anxious to go to war."

    Hmm, what else would it look like?  Methinks that Baghdad Bush is in denial.

    John McCain a/k/a John Sidney "Grampy McSame"

    by MRL on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:03:59 AM PDT

    •  Money Quote (none / 1)

      " . . . it would look like that I was anxious to go to war. And I'm not anxious to go to war."

      This statement is actually 100% factual.  Bush wasn't anxious to got to war.  He was anxious to send others to war.

      Love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal.

      by nattering nabob on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:56:23 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

  •  Nice Quote (none / 0)

    from that article:

    The book says Gen. Tommy Franks, who was in charge of the Afghan war as head of Central Command, uttered a string of obscenities when the Pentagon told him to come up with an Iraq war plan in the midst of fighting another conflict.

    by Ott on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:13:57 AM PDT

  •  No wonder Rumsfeld (none / 1)

    has been booted off campaign detail - looks like he was the primary source...

    Strateg(er)y for Du(DEM)mies

    by daunte on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:14:39 AM PDT

  •  I wonder... (none / 0)

    if Woodward sandbagged Bush with the first book to get access for the second.
    If we don't stand up for the kooks, who will? - Dean McCoppin

    by PSoTD on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:21:40 AM PDT

    •  Ya know... (none / 0)

      ...it wouldn't surprise me.  We're all used to old Bob.  But don't forget, this is Bob frickin' Woodward!  How stoopid are the Rethugs anyway.  When you see him coming, you RUN!  Those folks have some seriously short memories if they spilled the beans to the scourge of rat fuckers everywhere.  

      No one can terrorize a whole nation, unless we are all his accomplices. - Edward R. Murrow

      by CrazyHorse on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:26:30 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

      •  bull... (none / 0)

        He sees the wind, or feels it with sub zero temperature thrown in.  Perhaps a toss to the navy intell some feel he never left.  Please, once long ago in a galaxy far far away...
        We were plain lucky to get rid of Nixon, if he did not descend so far, fracture so deeply he'd have been left in ...

        Bob is an accomplished insider.

        by Marisacat on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 09:14:03 AM PDT

        [ Parent ]

        •  That's okay... (none / 0)

          ...if he feels the wind or jumps ship this time, I'll give him a pass.  If he'll play on team No W for a few months I can live with it.

          No one can terrorize a whole nation, unless we are all his accomplices. - Edward R. Murrow

          by CrazyHorse on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 10:48:47 AM PDT

          [ Parent ]

    •  Verrrry interesting theory... (none / 0)

      I like it.

      More accurately "A Texan in Bavaria," but would YOU give up UID 422?

      by A Texan in Maryland on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:26:49 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

  •  Any relation? (none / 0)

    Is Calvin Woodward - one of he AP writers who did this article any relation to Bob Woodward.  

    It just seems like too much of a coincidence.

    by rainbow128 on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:28:06 AM PDT

  •  Woodward goes off the reservation ... (none / 1)

    Or at least that is sure the impression I'm getting.

    I'm cynical enough to suspect that this is not the book he originally intended to write - but he was smart enough to see that Bush's Brilliant Triumph has been overtaken by events.

    -- Rick Robinson

    The best fortress is to be found in the love of the people - Niccolo Machiavelli

    by al Fubar on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 07:34:41 AM PDT

  •  Ballsy of him (none / 0)

    He needs to be able to book admin folks for face the nation or meet the press will own him in the ratings.

    The way the administration retailiates against bad press I'm suprised he had the guts to write somthing this critical. Then again he is in the top ten most powerful reporters in DC. So I guess its harder to shut him down then most journalists.

    "If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about the answers." - Thomas Pynchon

    by Windowdog on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 08:07:11 AM PDT

  •  Sketpical (none / 0)

    I'm skeptical about this for the following reason. Look at this quote:

    Woodward says Bush pulled Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld aside Nov. 21, 2001 -- when U.S. forces and allies were in control of about half of Afghanistan -- and asked him what kind of war plan he had on Iraq. When Rumsfeld said it was outdated, Bush told him to get started on a fresh one.

    Hold on a second. Bush told Rumsfeld what to do? Since when did Bush give orders in this administration? I just have a hard time believing that Bush was the mastermind of anything that he's done. This idea that he is the sole architect of the Iraq war is just too hard to swallow.


    "Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right." - Salvor Hardin

    by Zackpunk on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 08:13:57 AM PDT

    •  Is this not bigger news than it seems to be...? (none / 0)

      It doesn't seem to be getting front page status here and it's low on the  msnbc and cnn links...
      Is this a big deal to people or not ...considering the Iraq conflict has ranked above the economy in importance to many swing voters in recent polls I thought this type of article would be huge...?

      NO! no! NO!

      by AJS on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 09:30:54 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

    •  I agree with the skepticism (none / 0)

      Nothing leaked from the book so far -- which is this story and the one about the spats within the administration -- seems especially damning to me. In his SOTU in Jan 2002 he specifically called out the "axis of evil." Of course they started putting together plans to attack Iraq prior to that. He can dismiss the criticism as thinking ahead, preparation, anticipation, etc.

      Plus, even in this story Bush is on record saying he did not want to go to war...effectively he is saying the "threat" forced him to go to a war he did not want.

      We'll see what happens on Sunday.

      "This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected." - Barack Obama (3.18.08)

      by lapis on Fri Apr 16, 2004 at 09:35:14 AM PDT

      [ Parent ]

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