Presidential Dishonesty

My posting of the question, “Is Obama the most dishonest president in history?” on Facebook provoked the following question from someone I respect: “More dishonest than Richard Nixon? Ronald Reagan and his Iran-Contra debacle? George W, and the lies about WMDs?” After giving a necessarily short answer on Facebook due to space limitations, I am posting more information here.

Nixon’s mistake was to stonewall an investigation of something he did not create, implement, or manage. Many books have been written on this so I would have to spend a considerable amount of time to explain fully Nixon’s part in Watergate. For now, I will only say it is my understanding that there is no hard evidence to indicate that President Nixon had any prior knowledge of the break in. It seems he was not only surprised when he learned about it but that he wondered who could have been so stupid to have done such a foolish thing. Also it is clear that he was seriously misled by his Legal Counsel, John Dean, whose self-serving misdirection was instrumental in Nixon’s ill-advised cover up. Then there were the infamous tapes. As one leading Democrat at the time said, “He should have destroyed the tapes.” (paraphrased) However, unlike Obama, one cannot assemble a long list of Nixon lies because they, apparently, do not exist.

Reagan was troubled by one sticky incident. Most politicians would be thrilled with such scarcity. With that duly noted, after multiple investigations, Reagan was essentially cleared of any foreknowledge of the Iran-Contra adventure. He also appeared at least twice on national TV to take full personal responsibility and to apologize for the operation—a rare event in U.S. Politics.

George W, and the lies about WMDs: That “W” lied about WMD is nothing more than a persistent Liberal myth. I can only think that some who perpetuated the myth are lying themselves while others are simply ignorant of the facts. There is a huge, highly credible amount of evidence to support this. There is also a simple explanation: All major intelligence agencies around the world, including our own CIA, believed that Saddam Hussein still had stockpiles of WMD and that he intended to use them against the U.S.A. Notice I said “still” because everyone knew he had them and used them on his own people. So Bush proceeded with the best intelligence available and with the approval of virtually all the Democrats in Congress. If he had not acted on the intelligence and Hussein did use them on us, Bush would most certainly have been widely condemned and, perhaps, even impeached.

With Iraq and other major military matters regarding war, Bush always took his case to the Congress for approval while Obama has repeatedly chosen to ignore Congress and proceed on his own. If Bush had done the same, he would have been crucified by the media and the Democrats. Hypocrisy is rampant on the Left.

For the record …

Please read the following quotes and then answer the question at the end:

STATEMENTS ON IRAQ WMD — Part 1

Bush and Republican statements on the existence of Iraq WMD

“One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line.”

“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.”

“Iraq is a long way from [here], 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.”

“He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983.”

“We urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. 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.”

“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.”

“Hussein has… chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies.”

“There is no doubt that… Saddam Hussein has invigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies.”

“We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandated of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them.”

“We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country.”

“Iraq’s search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power.”

“We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction.”

“The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons…”

“I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force — if necessary — to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security.”

“There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years… We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass destruction.”

“He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do”

“In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al Qaeda members .. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons.”

“We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons of mass destruction.”

“Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime. He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so consistently prone to miscalculation. And now he is miscalculating America’s response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction. So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real.”

First, mentally, answer the question: “Do you believe the statements you just read were made to deceive people into thinking that Saddam Hussein had WMD when, in truth, he did not?”

And then click here.