Word: wmd
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...public opinion rested squarely on the imminent danger posed by Saddam's weapons of mass destruction. "I have never put our justification for action as regime change," he told the House of Commons. "We have to act within the terms set out in [U.N.] Resolution 1441," which focused on WMD. "That is our legal base...
...breezy words by U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld last week--"It is also possible that [the Iraqis] decided they would destroy [their WMD] prior to a conflict"--have pulled the rug from under Blair's argument and caused a wave of anti-Blair commentaries. While Bush freely tossed out multiple arguments for war, including alleged Iraqi links with al-Qaeda and the righteousness of changing an "evil" regime, by Blair's tight logic, no WMD meant no war could be legitimate. That could spell trouble for Tony...
...stories in Britain now routinely question whether Blair lied to make his case, was lied to by the Americans or was the victim of a major intelligence blunder. A parliamentary inquiry is likely. Blair has a reputation for aggressive spinning, and if it's proved that he torqued up WMD evidence to serve his p.r. needs, he might even be pushed toward resignation. An intelligence official told the BBC that a dubious claim in the WMD dossier Blair released last September--that some of Saddam's troops were trained to deploy chemical weapons within 45 minutes--was penned...
...Better for Blair to be a fool than a knave, but not by much; if his judgment was faulty on his casus belli, his leadership will be suspect. Despite the paltry results so far of the search for Iraq's banned weapons, he continues to insist that his prewar WMD claims will be vindicated. "You are just going to have to have a little bit of patience," he said in Warsaw last week. "I have absolutely no doubt at all that evidence will be found...
...performance. As always, Blair will reserve any criticisms he may have of Washington for the secure telephone line to the Oval Office. But not even British understatement could keep his aides from venting their regret that Rumsfeld had ever opened his mouth--and from praying that those WMD finally turn up. --By J.F.O. McAllister/London