[Futurework] Drip.Drip.Drip.4

[Karen Watters Cole]

Now we are moving to stage 2, where investigation and questions are branded by the loyalists as “smear campaigns” against the President.  When we were investigating sex or not last time around, these same men were insisting it was a search for the truth that the American public deserved.  Congress, eyeing summer recess, plans for further testimony and investigations in September.  Bush’s annual month long vacation in August should be interesting this year.  And so it continues:   Excerpts: Senator Says White House Wanted Iraq Uranium Claim By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, July 17, 2003, Filed at 8:31 a.m. ET   WASHINGTON (AP) -- CIA Director George Tenet told members of Congress a White House official insisted that President Bush's State of the Union address include an assertion about Saddam Hussein's nuclear intentions that had not been verified, a Senate Intelligence Committee member said Thursday.   Sen. Dick Durbin, who was present for a 4 1/2-hour appearance by Tenet behind closed doors with Intelligence Committee members Wednesday, said Tenet named the official. But the Illinois Democrat said that person's identity could not be revealed because of the confidentiality of the proceedings.  ``He (Tenet) certainly told us who the person was who was insistent on putting this language in which the CIA knew to be incredible, this language about the uranium shipment from Africa,'' Durbin said on ABC's ``Good Morning America.''   ``And there was this negotiation between the White House and the CIA about just how far you could go and be close to the truth and unfortunately those sixteen words were included in the most important speech the president delivers in any given year,'' Durbin added.   ``The more important question is who is it in the White House who was hellbent on misleading the American people and why are they still there?,'' Durbin said Thursday.  ``Being a member of the Intelligence Committee I can't disclose that but I trust that it will come out,'' he said. ``But it should come out from the president. The president should be outraged that he was misled and that he then misled the American people.''   Durbin and other Democrats in the Senate had said earlier the question is not why Tenet failed to remove the Africa information from the speech, but who insisted on leaving it in. ``All roads still lead back to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,'' Durbin said.   2… But Democratic committee members said too much blame was being placed on Tenet.  ``In a sense, I feel a little badly for George Tenet,'' said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.   Wyden said the CIA was not pushing to have the uranium matter included in Bush's speech, but that the White House was trying to justify its drive to oust Saddam.  ``I believe that there was if not a battle royal between the CIA staff and the White House staff, certainly some back and forth,'' he said. ``I believe that in this case, the White House political staff was looking at every rock, every nook and cranny to make their case and I believe the political staff prevailed.''  (end of excerpts)   How will the President address this, if indeed he is “outraged”?  Will he announce that “I am not a dummy” or “I was not misled”?  Will there be more than one scapegoat?  And Tony Blair is due to arrive shortly.  How unfortunate for him; he must be feeling like Job right now.  Bush could use a good distraction.  Let’s see: another aircraft carrier visit?  KWC