From: Gene McAloon 

I have no idea what you think you are doing with that letter from Levin.
The letter is irrelevant as a response to the quotation you are presumably
challenging.

Levin was expressing concern about the alleged WMD sites in Iraq. On what
basis did he believe those sites existed? On the claims made by Clinton in
spinning intel reports, as Bush was to do to an even greater degree later
on. Clinton engaged in that spin because he wanted to continue the
sanctions against Iraq at
a time when pressure was building in the UN to end them. Under similar
circumstances, Bush rushed to war before the reality of WMD in Iraq could
be revealed.

Clinton, infinitely more intelligent than Bush, recognized the reality and
agreed to soften the sanctions, while keeping as quiet about it as possible
to keep the far-right kooks from screaming sell-out. A lying son of a bitch
was Clinton, but a master politician with a brain in his head. That in
contrast to the bumbling, incompetent, schoolyard bully mentality of Bush
who can't even lie
well.

On Fri, 16 Jul 2004 08:32:15 -0400, Richard B.  wrote:

>On Thu, 15 Jul 2004 21:33:33 -0400, "Geo."
 wrote:
>
>>Yes, but Bill Clinton didn't initiate a pre-emptive strike on a country that
we
>>were not at war with WHILE WE WERE ALREADY FIGHTING A WAR ON ANOTHER FRONT.
>
>October 9, 1998
>
>Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, today, along with Senators McCain,
>Lieberman, Hutchison and twenty-three other Senators, I am sending a
>letter to the President to express our concern over Iraq's actions and
>urging the President, 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. ...
>
>[From the letter attached]
>"We are skeptical, however, that Saddam Hussein will take heed of this
>message even though it is from a unanimous Security Council. Moreover,
>we are deeply concerned that without the intrusive inspections and
>monitoring by UNSCOM and the IAEA, Iraq will be able, over time, to
>reconstitute its weapons of mass destruction programs.
>
>"In light of these developments, 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 Iraq sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by
>Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of mass destruction programs.
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Carl Levin, Joe Lieberman, Frank R. Lautenberg, Dick Lugar, Kit Bond,
>Jon Kyl, Chris Dodd, John McCain, Kay Bailey Hutchison, Alfonse
>D'Amato, Bob Kerrey, Pete V. Domenici, Dianne Feinstein, Barbara A.
>Mikulski, Thomas Daschle, John Breaux, Tim Johnson, Daniel K. Inouye,
>Arlen Specter, James Inhofe, Strom Thurmond, Mary L. Landrieu, Wendell
>Ford, John F. Kerry, Chuck Grassley, Jesse Helms, Rick Santorum.

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