Another element was added to that debate this week when a liberal think tank, the Center for American Progress, circulated 2 1/2-year-old comments by Secretary of State Colin Powell about Iraq's capabilities.
Powell, barely a month into the Bush administration, had used a news conference in Cairo to argue for keeping U.N. sanctions on Iraq. "And frankly they have worked," Powell said on Feb. 24, 2001. "He (Saddam) has not developed any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction. He is unable to project conventional power against his neighbors."
Since Powell made those remarks, the secretary and the president both have described Saddam as a grave danger to Americans, citing Iraq's alleged weapons as a major threat.
Powell, speaking to reporters Thursday in New York, said, "I didn't change my assessment."
Pointing out that the administration was new, Powell said, "You will note that I did not say he didn't have weapons of mass destruction. And I think in that interview I also went on to say that it was important for us to keep the pressure on and for inspectors to be able to get back in and the sanctions to be kept in place. He was a threat then. |
