War Is A Crime .org

Remarks for After Downing Street Rally at White House
Stephen Cleghorn
Military Families Speak Out
June 16, 2005

Good afternoon. I am Stephen Cleghorn, a member of Military Families Speak Out. My remarks will be brief because I have come simply to provide a little perspective from inside the world of military families. I am also here to stand in support of the call that Congressman Conyers and 88 other Representatives are making to investigate the revelations of the Downing Street Minutes and the British Briefing Papers. I believe that, if the press, the Congress and the courts have the courage to follow up on the leads given by these papers, we will see the case made for impeaching the President for lying to Congress to take us to war in Iraq.

Messengers of Truth
Untangling a Knot of Lies

Who thinks that President Bush misled us -- lied to us -- bamboozled us into invading and occupying Iraq?

He told Americans there were unmanned Iraqi aircraft that could drop bombs over our cities. His own intelligence agencies told him this was inaccurate. He tied Saddam to Al Qaeda and Bin Laden -- there was no evidence of that. He talked about Saddam being able to launch a strike on the United States in 45 minutes -- there was no evidence for this. He talked about the potential of a mushroom cloud over the United States -- a nuclear attack by Saddam -- there was no evidence for this. He used fear mongering tactics to scare people into supporting an unnecessary war. President Bush did not lie to us once, he did not lie to us twice -- he lied, and lied, and lied and lied -- for month after month. Because he and his minions repeated the lies so often many in the Congress and the media were fooled by their drumbeat of war lies and as a result the American people were fooled -- thousands of Americans were led to death or serious injury and more than 100,000 Iraqis were killed.

Rally to Support Rep. John Conyers and AfterDowningStreet.org's Demand for a House Resolution of Inquiry into Impeachable Offenses of George W. Bush

June 16, 2005 Washington, D.C.
Remarks by Mike Ferner, Veterans For Peace

Working as a Navy Corpsman during the Vietnam War, I took care of hundreds of young men who came home minus their arms and legs and sight and sanity. Unlike the fortunate sons who became today's powerful elite, working class kids of that generation were not able to claim "other priorities" to keep them out of the meat grinder. Many learned too late how to quit being good soldiers. So if my words today, spoken as young men and women die again for empire, sound a little sharp, I hope you will understand.

Statement Regarding the Importance of the Downing Street Memo
By Karen U. Kwiatkowski, Ph.D.

As a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel who worked for Bill Luti, Deputy Under Secretary for Defense, Near East South Asia Directorate, Under Secretary for Policy, Office of the Secretary of Defense from May 2002 to March 2003, I am providing the following assessment for the Congress and Congressional investigators interested in determining the importance of the so-called Downing Street Memo dated 23 July 2002.

My background is described at www.militaryweek.com/kwiatkowski.shtml, which also provides links to my public statements regarding the fabrications aggressively and incautiously used by the administration to justify the invasion of Iraq to the Congress, the American people, and the United Nations during the summer, fall and winter of 2002. I am also a member of the National Security Whistleblowers Coalition (www.nswbc.org).

WRITTEN TESTIMONY BY
FORMER US DIPLOMAT AND US ARMY COLONEL
MARY A. (ANN) WRIGHT

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE DOWNING STREET MEMOS

FOR THE PUBLIC HEARINGS
CONDUCTED BY US CONGRESSMAN JOHN CONYERS, JR.
JUNE 16, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC

My name is Mary A. (Ann) Wright. I was one of three US diplomats who resigned from the federal government in 2003 in opposition to the war in Iraq. I served my country for over thirty-five years. I was a US diplomat for sixteen years and was the Deputy Chief of Mission in our embassies in Sierra Leone, Micronesia, Afghanistan (briefly) and Mongolia. I was a member of the small team that reopened the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan in December, 2001. I had also had assignments in Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Grenada and Nicaragua. I received the State Department's Award for Heroism as Charge d'Affaires during the evacuation of Sierra Leone in 1997. I also was 29 years in the US Army/Army Reserves and participated in civil reconstruction projects after military operations in Grenada, Panama and Somalia. I attained the rank of Colonel during my military service.

Testimony of Ray McGovern
Steering Group, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity

Introduction: (45-second video clip from 'Breaking the Silence' by John Pilger showing former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice making the following remarks)

'Saddam Hussein has not developed any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction. He is unable to project conventional power against his neighbors.' Colin Powell, Feb. 24, 2001

'We are able to keep his arms from him. His military forces have not been rebuilt.' Condoleezza Rice, July 29, 2001

Testimony of retired Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, IV

Good morning. It is an honor to appear before this gathering to discuss the so-called 'Downing Street Memo' of July, 2002, and the assertion contained therein that in the Bush administration, 'the intelligence and the facts were being fixed around the policy' to remove Saddam through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD.

I served my country as a diplomat for almost twenty-three years, including tours in Niamey, Niger, and in Baghdad, Iraq as Deputy Chief of Mission and Charge d'Affaires, (acting Ambassador) during the Desert Shield phase of the first Gulf War. I was also appointed Ambassador to Gabon and Sao Tome and Principe by President George Herbert Walker Bush, and concluded my public service career as Special Assistant to President Clinton and Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council. I am the recipient of numerous awards from the Department of State as well as the Distinguished Defense Service Award from the Department of Defense for my service as Political Adviser to the Commander in Chief of American Armed Forces in Europe during the deployment of American troops to Bosnia.

My Testimony for the Downing Street Memo Hearings
By Cindy Sheehan

Congressman Conyers and all, it is an honor to be here to testify about the effect that the revelations of the Downing Street Memo has had on me and my family. It is an honor that I wish never had to happen. I believe that not any of us should be gathered here today for this reason: as the result of an invasion/occupation that never should have occured.

My son, Spc Casey Austin Sheehan, was KIA in Sadr City Baghdad on 04/04/04. He was in Iraq for only 2 weeks before L. Paul Bremer inflamed the Shi'ite Militia into a rebellion which resulted in the deaths of Casey and 6 other brave soldiers who were tragically killed in an ambush. Bill Mitchell, the father of Sgt. Mike Mitchell who was one of the other soldiers killed that awful day is with us here.

This is a picture of Casey when he was 7 months old. It's an enlargement of a picture he carried in his wallet until the day he was killed. He loved this picture of himself. It was returned to us with his personal effects from Iraq. He always sucked on those two fingers. When he was born, he had a flat face from passing through the birth canal and we called him "Edward G" short for Edward G. Robinson. How many of you have seen your child in his/her premature coffin? It is a shocking and very painful sight. The most heartbreaking aspect of seeing Casey lying in his casket for me, was that his face was flat again because he had no muscle tone. He looked like he did when he was a baby laying in his bassinette. The most tragic irony is that if the Downing Street Memo proves to be true, Casey and thousands of people should still be alive.

STATEMENT BY JOHN C. BONIFAZ
CONSTITUTIONAL ATTORNEY AND CO-FOUNDER, AFTERDOWNINGSTREET.ORG

BEFORE THE CONGRESSIONAL FORUM
ON THE DOWNING STREET MINUTES
THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2005

Congressman Conyers and Members of the Committee: Thank you for hosting this congressional forum today and thank you for your leadership.

My name is John Bonifaz. I am a Boston-based attorney specializing in constitutional litigation and the co-founder of AfterDowningStreet.org. AfterDowningStreet.org is a national coalition of veterans groups, peace groups, public interest organizations and ordinary citizens across this country calling for a formal congressional investigation into whether the President of the United States has committed impeachable offenses in connection with the Iraq war. We launched this campaign on May 26 of this year in response to the revelations which have emerged from the release of the Downing Street Minutes.

The recent release of the Downing Street Minutes provides new and compelling evidence that the President of the United States has been actively engaged in a conspiracy to deceive and mislead the United States Congress and the American people about the basis for going to war against Iraq. If true, such conduct constitutes a High Crime under Article II, Section 4 of the United States Constitution: 'The President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.'

The Independent
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
17 June 2005

American officials lied to British ministers over the use of "internationally reviled" napalm-type firebombs in Iraq.

Yesterday's disclosure led to calls by MPs for a full statement to the Commons and opened ministers to allegations that they held back the facts until after the general election.

Despite persistent rumours of injuries among Iraqis consistent with the use of incendiary weapons such as napalm, Adam Ingram, the Defence minister, assured Labour MPs in January that US forces had not used a new generation of incendiary weapons, codenamed MK77, in Iraq.

Listen here.

WH Press Secretary Mocks 'Downing Street Memo,' as Congressman Calls for Inquiry
By E&P Staff
Published: June 16, 2005 4:25 PM ET

NEW YORK With a forum about to begin on Capitol Hill on the so-called Downing Street Memo, hosted by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), reporters at today's White House briefing by Press Secretary Scott McClellan naturally raised the subject, albeit briefly.

Rather than ask about details or implications of the 2002 internal British document -- which seemed to suggest that the Bush administration was determined to go to war against Iraq and that intelligence would be �fixed� to support it --the correspondents wondered if the White House was ever going to respond to a letter authored by Conyers and signed by 88 of his colleagues asking for information about the memo.

They're always last, but they're on it now: NPR.

LISTEN HERE

GLOBE AND MAIL
By Paul Koring

WASHINGTON -- The emotive and charged word "impeachment" was voiced yesterday on Capitol Hill as a clutch of Democratic congressmen, backed by distraught mothers of soldiers slain in Iraq, put together a piece of theatre that could become the summer's political drama.

John Bonifaz, a self-styled constitutional lawyer and anti-war activist, suggested there are sufficient grounds to launch an inquiry into whether the President should be impeached for lying to Congress about the justification for the war.

"The United States House of Representatives has a constitutional duty to investigate fully and comprehensively the evidence revealed by the Downing Street minutes and other related evidence, and to determine whether there are sufficient grounds to impeach George W. Bush, the President of the United States," Mr. Bonifaz said.

BY RON HUTCHESON AND RUBY L. BAILEY
FREE PRESS WASHINGTON STAFF

WASHINGTON -- Two years after the Iraq invasion, the United States seems to be losing its stomach for war.

With polls showing support for the Iraq war at a record low, members of Congress are becoming increasingly vocal about their desire for an exit strategy.

On Thursday, 41 House Democrats formed a new "Out of Iraq" caucus.

And a hearing on the so-called Downing Street memo, that suggests the Bush Administration planned for war months before seeking Congressional authority, ended with a request by one witness that Congress open an inquiry into whether Bush should be impeached for purposefully misleading the nation about the need for war.

SOME IN CONGRESS MORE VOCAL IN OPPOSITION; RESOLUTION CALLS FOR WITHDRAWAL NEXT YEAR
By Ron Hutcheson
KNIGHT RIDDER WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON - Two years after the Iraq invasion, America seems to be losing its stomach for war.

With recent polls finding support for the Iraq war at a record low, members of Congress are becoming increasingly vocal about their desire for an exit strategy. Yesterday, 41 House Democrats formed a new "Out of Iraq" caucus.

Separately, four lawmakers -- two Democrats and two Republicans -- introduced a resolution calling for withdrawal starting in October 2006. It doesn't specify an end point for complete withdrawal, but it bucks the Bush administration line all the same.

By LAWRENCE M. O'ROURKE
McClatchy Newspapers
June 16, 2005

WASHINGTON - House Democrats opposed to the Iraq war came together Thursday to draw more public attention to the so-called "Downing Street Memo," the British government document that advised Prime Minister Tony Blair that President Bush was determined to invade Iraq nearly a year before the war was launched.

On the Senate side of the Capitol, Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., cited the memo Thursday in further holding up Bush's nominee for the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton. Reid and Senate Democrats have demanded a full accounting of whether Bolton exaggerated assessments of several countries' weapons programs.

British Memo Suggests Administration Misled Nation
Associated Press

Amid new questions about President Bush�s drive to topple Saddam Hussein, several House Democrats urged lawmakers on Thursday to conduct an official inquiry to determine whether the president intentionally misled Congress.

At a public forum where the word �impeachment� loomed large, Exhibit A was the so-called Downing Street memo, a prewar document leaked from inside the British government to The Sunday Times of London a month and a half ago. Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, organized the event.

BY RUBY L. BAILEY AND ELY PORTILLO
Knight Ridder Newspapers

WASHINGTON - (KRT) - A hearing Thursday on a secret British intelligence memo that said President Bush was committed to waging war on Iraq months before he said so publicly ended with a request for Congress to open an inquiry into whether Bush should be impeached for misleading the nation.

"All we're asking is to know the truth," said John Bonifaz, co-founder of AfterDowningStreet,org. "Some of his supporters want to say it's a question of failed intelligence. If that's all it was, so be it."

New York Times
By SCOTT SHANE
WASHINGTON, June 16 - Opponents of the war in Iraq held an unofficial hearing on Capitol Hill on Thursday to draw attention to a leaked British government document that they say proves their case that President Bush misled the public about his war plans in 2002 and distorted intelligence to support his policy.

In a jammed room in the basement of the Capitol, Representative John Conyers Jr. of Michigan, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, presided as witnesses asserted that the "Downing Street memo" - minutes of a July 23, 2002, meeting of Prime Minister Tony Blair and his top security officials - vindicated their view that Mr. Bush made the decision to topple Saddam Hussein long before he has admitted.

By Eric Alterman
June 16, 2005

On Wednesday afternoon, Rep. John Conyers Jr., ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, held his own set of hearings on the "Downing Street Memo" and other evidence pointing to the conclusion that the Bush and Blair administrations cooked the books on pre-war intelligence in Iraq.

Later the same day, at Lafayette Square Park in front of the White House, activists held a rally to call attention to the memo and the fact that Conyers plans to deliver to the White House a letter signed by over 500,000 Americans and more than 90 members of Congress asking the president to respond to questions raised by the memo.

Michael Smith
Reporter, Sunday Times of London
Thursday, June 16, 2005; 10:00 AM

Two top-secret British documents that were leaked to the press recently suggest that the Bush administration "fixed" intelligence about Iraq and that actions at the United Nations were designed to give legal cover to British Prime Minister Tony Blair before an invasion to oust Saddam Hussein .

Michael Smith, a reporter for the Sunday Times of London, has led the coverage, starting with his report of the so-called Downing Street Memo on May 1.Smith was online Thursday, June 16, at 10 a.m. ET to discuss the Downing Street Memo and his reporting.

FROM: Greg Palast
TO: Rep. John Conyers

Chairman Conyers,

It's official: The Downing Street memos, a snooty New York Times "News Analysis" informs us, "are not the Dead Sea Scrolls." You are warned, Congressman, to ignore the clear evidence of official mendacity and bald-faced fibbing by our two nations' leaders because the cry for investigation came from the dark and dangerous world of "blogs" and "opponents" of Mr. Blair and Mr. Bush.

On May 5, "blog" site Buzzflash.com carried my story, IMPEACHMENT TIME: "FACTS WERE FIXED," bringing the London Times report of the Downing Street memo to US media which seemed to be suffering at the time from an attack of NADD -- "news attention deficit disorder."The memo, which contains the ill-making admission that "the intelligence and facts were being fixed" to match the Iraq-crazed fantasies of our President, is sufficient basis for a hearing toward impeachment of the Chief Executive. But to that we must add the other evidence and secret memos and documents still hidden from the American public.

By Ruby L. Bailey, Knight Ridder Newspapers
Wed Jun 15, 5:35 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The secret British memo of 2002 that reported that President Bush was determined to go to war against Iraq months earlier than he publicly acknowledged will get its first official hearing on Thursday - sort of.

In the closest version so far to a congressional hearing on the Downing Street memo, Rep. John Conyers (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., will head a forum examining the document. That will be followed by an Internet-organized rally in front of the White House. Conyers plans to deliver the signatures of 105 congressional Democrats and more than 500,000 citizens on petitions demanding a detailed response from the Bush administration to the memo's allegations.

From Downing Street to Capitol Hill
Two leaked memos are raising further questions about whether the Bush administration "fixed" its intel to justify the Iraq war.

WEB EXCLUSIVE, By Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball
Newsweek, Updated: 6:59 p.m. ET June 15, 2005

June 15 - Two senior British government officials today acknowledged as authentic a series of 2002 pre-Iraq war memos stating that Saddam Hussein's nuclear weapons program was "effectively frozen" and that there was "no recent evidence" of Iraqi ties to international terrorism�private conclusions that contradicted two key pillars of the Bush administration's public case for the invasion in March 2003.

Who will be speaking at the hearing and rally? Read on...

Soldier for the Truth
By Marc Cooper
L.A. Weekly
Friday 20 February 2004

Exposing Bush's talking-points war.

After two decades in the U.S. Air Force, Lieutenant Colonel Karen
Kwiatkowski, now 43, knew her career as a regional analyst was coming to an
end when - in the months leading up to the war in Iraq - she felt she was
being "propagandized" by her own bosses.

With master's degrees from Harvard in government and zoology and two books
on Saharan Africa to her credit, she found herself transferred in the spring

By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Wednesday 15 June 2005

Almost five hundred years ago, Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church, initiating a sequence of events which forever altered the geometry of global religion, politics and power. Luther's Theses began with the words, "Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg."

Another document is going to be nailed to another door on Thursday, June 16th. This door opens not to a church, but to the White House. This document is freighted with hard truths, stern demands and nearly a million names. This document, once nailed up, likewise carries with it all the possibilities of change.