Category: Uncategorized

What did Kamel Say?

Last week Newsweek reported that Hussein Kamel told the CIA that Iraq did destroy all its chemical and biological weapons. You'll remember Kamal as the son-in-law who defected, became a Western informant, then stupidly went back to Iraq, where he was quickly executed. Newsweek had been one of many publications that had held Kamel up as an information goldmine, one that proved Iraq was up to no good. The Newsweek story failed to make clear how this information fit in with their years of other reporting. The Guardian tried to put the whole thing together, saying that the former UN inspector now thinks Kamel was a "consumate liar." Nobody gives much guidance on how much of what we think about the programs is based on Kamel. Much of what he said was backed up by documents, so it can't be all wrong.

Cloture for Estrada

You heard it here first. This afternoon, Republicans in the Senate are going to file a cloture motion in the Senate, which be the beginning of the end for the Estrada confirmation filibuster. Significantly, Republicans are divided on this -- some think fighting the filibuster is right, and others think its sets a bad precedent by creating a de facto 60 vote requirement for confirmations. Word has it that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) is going to keep filing clotures until Estrada is nominated. Minority Whip Harry Reid (D-NV) says he's got 41 solid votes against Estrada, which would keep the vote from occuring with or without cloture. More than ever, this is a P.R. battle -- the Senate has a boatload of work on its agenda, and the side that can make their opponents look like radical obstructionst whackos is the side that will win.

Expanded Archives

For those of you who followed the previous incarnation of OnePeople, and missed the endless analysis of Iraq coverage, this is your lucky day. We've expanded the monthly archives. Highlights include the US leaving the Biological Weapons Convention just as it's launching the Iraq diplomatic campaign, Condoleeza Rice hinting at connections between Iraq and Al Qaeda way back in September, Hillary Clinton claiming her vote for the war resolution was the only way to avoid the war, Scott Ritter's credibility gap, and the NYT calling the French two-step Resolution 1441 a "triumph" for the Bush Administration.

Weeks or Months

"Weeks not months," has been the big phrase thrown around in the last month. It's used to describe how long Iraq has to give in to real disarmament and so, effectively, how long we have before the war starts. The issue of when this phrase first became the policy is probably going to become relevant very soon. That's because soon it will have been policy for months, not weeks. I went back looking for the first reference. It seems to have been Donald Rumsfeld on Jan 19. Within a week it was the catchphrase in both London and Washington. Will they meet their own deadline? New York Times By STEVEN R. WEISMAN 01/20/2003 Mr. Rumsfeld said the decision on whether Iraq was cooperating with the United Nations, a determination generally regarded as a possible precursor to war, would be made ''in a matter of weeks, not in months or years.'' He added, ''That judgment call will just have to be made.'' New York Times 01/22/2003 By RICHARD W. STEVENSON and JAMES DAO Administration officials said the timetable was still to press for a decision from the Council in a matter of weeks rather than months, on the ground that Mr. Hussein's defiance of the demand for cooperation was already obvious. The French may disagree, one official said, but their argument that the inspections are working to disarm Iraq ''won't stand up to scrutiny.'' 01/26/2003 The Sunday Telegraph Washington and London were agreed last night that Iraq would be given "weeks not months" to disarm or face attack. 01/26/2003 Associated Press Newswires Asked whether they should have weeks or months, Blair replied "Well, I don't believe it will take them months to find out whether he is cooperating or not, but they should have whatever time they need." 01/28/2003 By JOHN TAGLIABUE The New York Times Some legislators said tonight that the inspectors should be given more time, and that Mr. Blair's mention on Sunday of ''weeks, not months'' was not sufficient. 01/28/2003 By STEVEN R. WEISMAN The New York Times In Mr. Powell's memoirs, one of his dictums is: ''Remain calm. Be kind.'' But the time for talking to allies calmly and kindly, aides readily concede, is most likely a matter of weeks now rather than months 01/30/2003 By ALEX BERENSON The New York Times After Mr. Bush's speech, ''the market expects a resolution within weeks instead of months,'' said Harvey Hirschhorn, the head of asset allocation and strategy for the Columbia Management Group, which manages $150 billion, including more than $50 billion in stocks. 01/31/2003 By RICHARD W. STEVENSON The New York Times WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 -- President Bush all but set a timetable for war today, warning Saddam Hussein that Iraq has ''weeks, not months'' to disarm or face an invasion led by the United States.

Perpetually-New Homeland Security Dept. Story

The start up of the Homeland Security department is threatening to become one of those stories that just seems to never really happen, but keeps appearing in the news over and over and over again. Today there are wire stories about the department's first day. Didn't we already have that? I'm so disinterested in this department I'm too lazy to go check what all that fuss was about a week or so ago. This is like the story "Human Genome Mapped" that kept infecting newspapers. When it really happens, lemme know. For Homeland Security it's even worse becuase the whole department seems to be an intellectual abstraction anyway. Homeland Security Dept. Marks First Day By RON FOURNIER, AP White House Correspondent WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) promised a "united defense of our homeland" Friday in marking the launch of the department created to answer the danger of terrorism. The Homeland Security Department combines the forces of 22 agencies and 170,000 workers who patrol America's borders, secure computer networks, check for contamination of crops and otherwise help guard against terrorism. Saturday is its first full day of work.

FEMA Internment Camps

This is equal parts alarmist speculation and anonymous sources. That said: When Reagan was considering an invasion of Nicaragua (you remember that, right?) he supposedly signed an executive order providing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) broad powers to control "violent and widespread internal dissent or national opposition against a US military invasion abroad." That's chilling enough, but it gets much, much worse.

House Passes Human Cloning Ban

HR 534 or Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2003 bans all forms of cloning -- even creating clusters of cells or an embryo for stem cell research. You don't even have to be successful -- just trying to create a clone would be a felony. What if another country breaks the technology first? Don't even think about it. The 10 year / $1M fine applies to the import and export of clone material or anything derived from clone material. It passed through the House, 241 to 155. Kudos to the Clerk of the House for being Johnny-on-the-spot with the roll call. The debate is this: if you leave cloned cells alone, they die. If you put them in a womb, they grow into a baby. Even if they don't grow into babies, they can be used in stem cell research, which promises to give us an unprecedented ability to mess with the human body -- like grow new organs. Interestingly, this isn't a subphylum of the abortion issue. You'll find abortion opponents for theraputic cloning, and vice versa. HR 801, an alternative bill, would prohibit only the baby-making part, but ups the fines to $10 million.