There has been some discussion recently on the state of dubya's mental health. We should also be discussing Cheney's apparent detachment from reality.

Some great CNN screen shots on this dKos diary by EphemeralNotion.

Actually, the Panel report does show a 1994 meeting between bin Laden and an Iraqi intel officer sent by Saddam. Although the report clearly states nothing came of it, Cheney and the rest of his cronies will use that as proof. They do stuff like that all the time...find a nebulous shred and have the GOP Media run with it. Don't forget, they are never wrong.

Yes, T2. Your point is well taken - the report actually stated that there was no collaboration on ANY terrorist attack directed at the US, not even 9/11. The title I gave this post didn't reflect that accurately.

According to the transcript with McCellan - Bush also doesn't seem to claim that the al Qaeda/Saddam planned terrorist attacks link is true - Bush's claim was Iraq was aligned with some (unspecified) terrorists who supported suicide bombers which refer to the Palestinians and Hezzbola and not al Qaeda, and he agreed that Saddam had NOTHING to do with 9/11. Of course, Bush only cares about getting the message across that Saddam supported (unspecified) terrorists. In the same way our "war on terrorism" will last forever because it is an unspecified war that can morph into any attacking anyone labelled a terrorist rather than having a specific target and a specific goal.

Mary, Have you seen this?

Iraq on the Record: The Bush Administration's Public Statements on Iraq (pdf file) was compiled over a year ago by staff for a House committee minority member, Henry Waxman. It is in need of updating, but the 237 misleading statements identified there consist of '11 statements that claimed that Iraq posed an urgent threat; 81 statements that exaggerated Iraq’s nuclear activities; 84 statements that overstated Iraq’s chemical and biological weapons capabilities; and 61 statements that misrepresented Iraq’s ties to al Qaeda.'

Among those cited are these:

• In a November 7, 2002, speech, President Bush stated: Saddam Hussein is “a threat because he is dealing with Al Qaida. . . . [A] true threat facing our country is that an Al Qaida-type network trained and armed by Saddam could attack America and not leave one fingerprint.”

• In his January 28, 2003, State of the Union address, President Bush stated: “Evidence from intelligence sources, secret communications, and statements by people now in custody reveal that Saddam Hussein aids and
protects terrorists, including members of al Qaeda. Secretly, and without fingerprints, he could provide one of his hidden weapons to terrorists, or help them develop their own.”

• In his February 5, 2003, remarks to the United Nations, Secretary of State Colin Powell stated: “what I want to bring to your attention today is the potentially much more sinister nexus between Iraq and the al Qaeda terrorist network, a nexus that combines classic terrorist organizations and modern methods of murder. Iraq today harbors a deadly terrorist network
headed by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi an associate and collaborator of Usama bin Laden and his al-Qaida lieutenants.”

• In remarks on May 1, 2003, announcing the end of major combat operations in Iraq, President Bush stated: “The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on September the 11, 2001 — and still goes on. . . . [T]he liberation of Iraq . . . removed an ally of al
Qaeda.”

I'm not in the House of Representatives (I'm cursed with too much self-respect) but my personal summary is:

THIS IS WHY OUR YOUTH ARE DYING

Islamacist government - not
Yellow cake - not
Nuclear weapons - not
Biological weapons - not
Chemical weapons - not
Imminent threat - not
9-11 - not
Al Qaeda - not
Oil - yes
Halliburton profits - yes
Satisfy Bush's Oedipal complex - yes

larre - thanks for your comment and I really like your summary. I've been very impressed with Waxman's stuff - he has been doing a wonderful job of tracking the lies and deceits of this WH.

The sad truth is we can track all the lies and deceit we want, but so what? Not one person, NOT ONE, is being held accountable in this Administration.

this is a day later post...but to pat myself on the back, Bush today did come out and use the 1994 meeting with bin Laden and Iraq as proof they had conspired, just as I predicted in the above post. But I'm no genius, everyone knew he would....he's never wrong.