Bob Woodward has a new book, Plan of Attack on the events preceeding the Iraq Invasion
Plan of Attack is the definitive account of a turning point in history as President George W. Bush, his war council, and allies launch a preemptive attack on Iraq, toppling Saddam Hussein and taking over the country. From in-depth interviews and documents, Bob Woodward provides an authoritative narrative of the Administration's behind-the-scenes maneuvering over two years and examines the causes and consequences of the most controversial war since Vietnam.
CBS 60 Minutes had an interview with Bob Woodward today. Here are some snippets
Getso a point where in July, the end of July 2002, they need $700 million, a large amount of money for all these tasks. And the president approves it. But Congress doesn't know and it is done. They get the money from a supplemental appropriation for the Afghan War, which Congress has approved. ?Â?,TS(Bome people are gonna look at a document called the Constitution which says that no money will be drawn from the treasury unless appropriated by Congress. Congress was totally in the dark on this."
In his book, Woodward writes: "The presentation was a flop. The photos were not gripping. The intercepts were less than compelling. And then George Bush turns to George Tenet and says, 'This is the best we've got?'" Says Woodward: George Tenet's sitting on the couch, stands up, and says, Dontw orry, it's a slam dunk case."
The Congress did not know about it, Secretary of State Colin Powell did not know about it.
old Condi Rice. He told Rumsfeld. He knew Cheney wanted to do this. And they realized they haven$(Bt (Btold Colin Powell, the secretary of state.$(D
(BBut Prince Bandar, the Saudi Ambassador knew about it.
But, it turns out, two days before the president told Powell, Cheney and Rumsfeld had already briefed Prince Bandar, the Saudi ambassador. $(DSa(Bturday, Jan. 11, with the president's permission, Cheney and Rumsfeld call Bandar to Cheney's West Wing office, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Myers, is there with a top-secret map of the war plan. And it says, $(ATo(Bp secret. No foreign.$(B N(Bo foreign means no foreigners are supposed to see this,$(D s(Bays Woodward.
And Woodward told 60 Minutes that Bandar has promised the president that Saudi Arabia will lower oil prices in the months before the election -- to ensure the U.S. economy is strong on election day.
Read the rest spin on this will start tomorrow.