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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group
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To: TimF who wrote (149198)10/26/2004 7:37:59 PM
From: Michael Watkins  Read Replies (1) of 281500
 
I think the reason its an issue (for me at least) is not for the "shock value" in a campaign, but:

1. The ISG (CIA survey) team did not find this material anywhere in Iraq, let alone in this facility. 350 metric tonnes is a lot of stuff, let alone a lot of explosive material. Where could it be...

2. The over-reaching mission for Operation Iraqi Freedom was based on the assertion that Weapons of Mass Destruction were present in the country, including nuclear materials or production facilities. This material was well known to intelligence officials before the war started yet they made no special attempt to secure the material. Part of the material has very specific application in producing nuclear weapons. Yet no special attempt was made to secure it quickly.

Nor to find it once it was determined missing.

This smells bad, and I don't mean this merely in a political sense but also in a practical sense.

3. Where is the material? If it truly has not been detected in any attacks against "coalition forces", then where is it? Who has it? And What do they intend to do with it?

Point 2 speaks directly to the core of the mission and therefore can be connected directly to the political leadership as well as defense leadership. Point 3, just as important, suggests that a huge hole in the fence was left open and perhaps now terrorists have in their possession highly restricted materials in quantities they could never have obtained on their own without US help.

The irony, sadly, is not even funny.
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