This is the story burning up the blogosphere late tonight.
Saddam Hussein’s intelligence agency secretly financed a trip to Iraq for three U.S. lawmakers during the run-up to the U.S.-led invasion, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
The three anti-war Democrats made the trip in October 2002, while the Bush administration was trying to persuade Congress to authorize military action against Iraq. While traveling, they called for a diplomatic solution.
Prosecutors say that trip was arranged by Muthanna Al-Hanooti, a Michigan charity official, who was charged Wednesday with setting up the junket at the behest of Saddam’s regime. Iraqi intelligence officials allegedly paid for the trip through an intermediary and rewarded Al-Hanooti with 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil.
The lawmakers are not named in the indictment but the dates correspond to a trip by Democratic Reps. Jim McDermott of Washington, David Bonior of Michigan and Mike Thompson of California. None was charged and Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd said investigators “have no information whatsoever” any of them knew the trip was underwritten by Saddam.
“Obviously, we didn’t know it at the time,” McDermott spokesman Michael DeCesare said Wednesday. “The trip was to see the plight of the Iraqi children. That’s the only reason we went.”
Yeah, you had no idea that Saddam was behind the trip. The Iraqis had been trotting out their starved kids while denouncing the sanctions for years. Too bad Saddam was just like every other dictator, funneling money from his people to keep pumping out palaces and prestige for his ruling class. (Remember the stories of Saddam paying big bucks for taxi cab drivers to pick up stillborn baby corpses for use during propaganda parades?) If McDermott didn’t know that before he went to Iraq, didn’t realize that he was being used, then one wonders if the man is qualified to operate a salt shaker.
Then again, maybe it was just the Iraqi Government’s marketing team that suckered them in. I hear they were just tops.
The anti-war crowd is the same now as it was before we went into Iraq: populated by foolish lawmakers all too happy to play pawns for those who would slaughter Americans, military and civilian alike.
More reaction:
The Radio Equalizer: Brian Maloney: Talk Radio Likely To Pounce On McDermott - Saddam Ties
Alarming News: Not anti-war, just on the other side
Sister Toldjah » Congressman McDermott criticized Bush on Iraqi soil - on Saddam’s dime
Iraq paid for Jim McDermott/David Bonior/Mike Thompson trip?
Neocon Express - Saddam’s Intelligence Services Paid for Democrats to Visit Iraq
FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog » The Three Stooges Go to Iraq
Jim, you ignorant slut. | Redstate
Gateway Pundit: Shocker!… Saddam Paid For Sleazy Antiwar Dems to Travel to Iraq
Ace of Spades HQ - Saddam Hussein Paid For Baghdad Jim’s 2002 Junket?
Hot Air » Blog Archive » Saddam paid for 2002 Congressional junket to Baghdad
Stop The ACLU » Blog Archive » Three Democrats had trip paid for by SADDAM prior to Iraq War
Saddam Bought Himself a Couple Democratic Mouthpieces : The Sundries Shack
A Blog For All: Saddam’s Iraq Paid For Democrats Trip To Iraq
baldilocks: A Democrat Party in Baghdad
Gateway Pundit: US Democrat Now Linked to Oil For Food Scandal
GINA COBB: Saddam’s Three Stooges Exposed
Atlas Shrugs: Saddam’s Democrat Puppets on the Take
Big Dogs Weblog » Democrats Did Hussein’s Bidding
Yourish.com » Saddam’s CAIR package
The Jawa Report: Saddam Bankrolled Dem Senators’ Antiwar Trip - Updated
Posted by: Neocon in Democrats, History, Iraq
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 27th, 2008 at 12:55 am and is filed under Democrats, History, Iraq. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
