Feith's Prewar Intel

Yesterday, Michigan Democrat Senator Carl Levin released a report stating that a prewar intelligence report authored by then Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith was created using "an alternative intelligence assessment process", implying that it was false and not proportionate to the truth. The report, issued in 2002, stated that Iraq and Al-Queda had a "mature symbiotic relationship" and provided evidence that the two were working together to launch terrorism against the United States and allied nations.

At the time of Feith's report, the CIA had concluded that their was an "evolving" association "based on sources of varying reliability". Further, Feith's office stated that it based it's report on both "reliable and unreliable" intelligence reports. Based on these statements, I do not see the problem. Intelligence does not rely solely on facts. Not everything can be proven. Intelligence is the gathering of information from any source and when drawn together, a pattern or credible action is developed.

The CIA itself determined before the war that at the very least an evolving relationship was being developed between Iraq and Al-Queda. So a dictator with a ruthless army was involved in a evolving relationship with those who came upon American shores to murder thousands of our countrymen? Furthermore, it is now known that Al-Queda is indeed conducting terrorist and insurgent operations within Iraq, as well as a host of other war torn nations.

Levin's report states that Feith's actions, although inappropriate, were not illegal. If they were not illegal then what is the problem? Could things have been done cleaner? Yeah probably. However, the fact remains that the US went to war with a ruthless enemy, who himself was a weapon of mass destruction. He murdered thousands of his own people, invaded numerous other countries, ruled his people with an iron fist and refused to cooperate with the UN weapons inspectors.

In order to win the War on Terrorism, we must not consume ourselves with issues such as these. Although I believe we must abide by the rules of law, I also realize that some of these laws only serve to restrict our valiant actions and will undermine our intentions to win the war and destroy our enemy. If we briefly forsake certain rights, we will enable ourselves to unite as a nation, win the war and spread peace to other nations.