A Dark Anniversay

Our friends at Crooks and Liars dot com remind us that today is a dark day in American history. We are directed to "Corrente" for a post appropriately titled The Day The Music Died

"On February 5, 2003, Secretary of State Colin Powell addressed the United Nations to rally support for an invasion of Iraq.


His presentation contained little substance and numerous obvious flaws, and the international community was unimpressed.


America’s mainstream media, however, declared it “compelling.”"

I was home that day; watching Powell's testimony. I so clearly remember UN Inspectors, Hans Blix and Mohammed El Baridai questioning Powell's sources and requesting information on the coordinates and locations of the various "labs" and "weapons caches" only to be told that this was all "classified and sensitive information." That part of the day's story rarely saw the light of day in the American media.

"LiberalViewer" over at YouTube offers us this piece of video from Meet the Press from June of 2007 in which Powell attempts to defend himself by placing the blame for his complicity on agents within the CIA.

Powell does not get off the hook that easily however when you compare his UN testimony to statements he made two years prior:

Finally, on this Super Duper Tuesday, "Corrente" commenter Corrine, offers her memory of that day with this stinging reminder of what might have been:

"Only one Democratic candidate was brave enough to call bullshit on Colin Powell:


February 5, 2003


WASHINGTON, D.C. – Statement by Democratic presidential candidate Gov. Howard Dean in response to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell’s comments today before the U.N. Security Council:


“While I have the utmost respect for Secretary of State Colin Powell, I heard little today in his comments before the U.N. Security Council that makes the President’s case for war strong enough to establish a new doctrine of preemption, or strong enough for going to war unilaterally.


“The Secretary of State made a compelling case for what the American people already know. Saddam Hussein is a deceitful tyrant who must be disarmed.


“But I heard little today that leads me to believe that there is an imminent threat warranting unilateral military action by the United States against Iraq.


“Terrorism around the globe is a far greater danger to the United States than Iraq. We are pursuing the wrong war. While Secretary Powell discussed the previously known fact that elements of Al Qaeda have been present in Iraq, he did not offer compelling evidence that there is a current operational link between the two.


“Despite the Secretary of State’s comments today, we continue to have more questions than answers in this debate about sending U.S. troops into harm’s way.


“This is the gravest decision any President will make: Whether to send our sons and daughters into battle to risk their lives for freedom.


“Neither the President in his speech before Congress nor Secretary of State Colin Powell today before the Security Council has made a case for immediate, unilateral military action."

Gov. Dean was indeed a lone voice in the wilderness as the re-playing of Powell's "dog and pony show" in the days following accounted for the final push in American opinion polls that gave Bush his green light to launch this country into a quagmire from which we will not soon extricate ourselves.

Peace,
Chad (The Left) Shue