Statement by Former Ambassador Joseph Wilson

August 24, 2005

M

Wed, 24 Aug 2005 01:54:19 -0400

Submitted by davidswanson on Tue, 2005-08-23 23:49. Cindy Sheehan

August 22nd, 2005

The Bush White House and its right wing allies are responding to Cindy

Sheehan and the military families' vigil in Central Texas in the same

way that they always respond to bad news –by unleashing personal

attacks and smears against her.

This White House never wants an open public discussion, and it

certainly never wants to be told that it is wrong. It always tries to

change the message by attacking the messenger.

They did it with former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill when he wrote

a book that suggested that the White House used 9/11 as an excuse to

invade Iraq.

They did it when Richard Clarke revealed that the White House ignored

warnings about Bin Laden.

They did it in a most despicable way, as everybody now knows, when

they revealed my wife's identity as a CIA employee because they were

unhappy when I spoke the truth and told the American people that

President Bush's claim was false concerning Niger's giving uranium to

Iraq, part of the trumped up rationale for our invasion.

So no one should be surprised that when these mothers and families who

have lost loved ones in Iraq step up to question the President, the

White House responds not with the respect due them, but with hateful

attacks and smears. But enough is enough. Ours is a government of the

people, by the people and for the people; and the people in the name

of Cindy Sheehan are right in demanding accountability for the tragedy

foisted upon our great nation by this administration. To smear her

rather than hear her is un-American and undemocratic.

______________________

Joseph C. Wilson IV was U.S. Ambassador to Gabon from 1992-1995 and is

an international business consultant.

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