Iraq War Clique

Almost the entire Iraq-war clique, advocated the war from 1998 on. 9/11 was only a convenient pretext. Amazingly almost all were members of just two organizations: IASPS and PNAC. Both were neoconservative, and there were many links between the two. (original page: old.zfacts.com/node/297)

• “A Jerusalem-based think tank with an office in Washington, D.C.”
• Began promoting the Iraq war in 1996 by lobbying the Israeli government.
• Richard Perle (later Rumsfeld’s Chairman of Defense Policy Board, delivered “Clean Break” report to Israeli Prime Minister.
• Current views (2010): Obama is the first American president who is a dictator. We should not be surprised if he proves to be the last president.

Members in the Iraq-War clique:
David Wurmser: Middle East advisor to Vice President Cheney
Douglas  Feith: Undersecretary of Defense for Policy until 2005.
Richard  Perle: First Chairman of Rumsfeld’s Defense Policy Board.
Charles  Fairbanks: Former assistant to and college friend of Wolfowitz.

PNAC:  Project for New American Century

• The main neocon lobby, it focused first on invading Iraq.
• Founded 1997, by William Kristol & Robert Kagan.
• First action: open letter to Clinton advocating Iraq war.

Members in the Iraq-War clique:
Cheney,  Rumsfeld,  Wolfowitz,  Feith,  Bolton,  Libby,  Abrams,  Wurmser,  Perle.

JINSA, The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs

• “explaining the link between U.S. national security and Israel’s security”

Served on JINSA’s Advisory Board:  Cheney,  Wolfowitz,  Feith,  Bolton,  Perle.

Defense Policy Board

• This board was at the heart of the push for war, from the first days after 9/11.

Membership from 8/16/2001 through and beyond the start of the Iraq war:
Richard Perle, Chairman (American Enterprise Institute), Kenneth Adelman, Newt Gingrich, Henry Kissinger, Dan Quale, James Woolsey, many more.

The Weekly Standard

• Funded by Rupert Murdoch (owner of Fox News and Wall St. Journal).
• Editor: William Kristol, co-founder of PNAC,
  • son of Irving Kristol, the neconservative’s “godfather.”

Elliot Abrams, Deputy Assistant to the President.

• 2002-present, Special Assistant to G.W. Bush

Connections to Iraq-War clique:  [#PNAC] with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Bolton, Libby.

John Bolton: Undersecretary of State

• 1998 Signed PNAC Letters to Clinton, Gringrich, Lott advocating Iraq War.
• 2002 December 19. Contributed false accusation of Iraqi uranium purchase to State Dept. Fact sheet. This accusation had been debunked in March 2002 by Wilson who reported directly to the State Dept. and previously by the ambassador to Niger.

Connections to Iraq-War clique:  JINSA Advisory Board as of 1998 with Cheney, Wolfowitz, Feith, Perle.

Ahmed Chalabi, the Iraqi who conned the neocons.

• 1956, a secular Iraqi Shiite from a wealthy banking family, left Iraq at age 12.
• 1985, introduced Perle to Wolfowitz.
• 1989, fled Jordan after receiving 22 year sentence for embezzlement.
• 1999, Wurmser says Chalabi one of two mentors concerning the Middle East. 
• 2001, PNAC’s Director of Middle East Initiative: “Chalabi may be ideal” to lead opposition. He has his own intelligence service, which dwarfed the reach and understanding of the CIA’s clandestine service.”
• 2002, Fake WMD stories on 60 Minutes. Gets fake bio-weapons stories [Winnebagoes of Death] into the CIA’s National Intelligence Estimate used by Congress to vote on the war, and into Powell’s speech to the UN.
• 2004, April poll in Iraq asks who do you trust: Chalabi 0.6%. Who do you not trust at all: Chalabi 45%, Saddam Hussein 14%.
• 2004, Iraqi police backed by U.S. troops found counterfeit money when they raided Chalabi’s Baghdad house in May. Chalabi said he collected the fake currency in his role as chairman of the Governing Council’s finance committee.
• When finally given a chance to vote in January 2005, Iraqis did not award Chalabi’s party a single seat in the new parliament.
• 2005 Became Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq with authority over Oil for one year.

Connections to Iraq-War clique:  PNAC, Perle, Wolfowitz, Wurmser.

Dick Cheney, Vice President.

• 1969-71, Assistant to Rumsfeld,  and also 1974–75.
• 1989, Hired Wolfowitz and Libby as Sect. of Defense under the elder Bush.
• 1996-00, Jinsa Advisory Board
• 1997, Signer of founding PNAC “Principles”
• 2001, Championed Wolfowitz and brought in Libby and Wurmser, under G.W. Bush.

Connections to Iraq-War clique:  Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Libby, Feith,  Bolton,  Perle.

Charles Fairbanks: Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Reagan

• Served under Paul Wolfowitz, a college friend.
• Co-authored the IASPS “Clean Break” report with Feith, Perle and Wurmser.

Douglas Feith, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (till August 2005)

• 1982-84 Part of Reagan’s DOD, Hired by Perle.
• 1996— JINSA Advisory Board Member
• 1997, Co-authored the IASPS “Clean Break” report to Israel with Fairbanks, Perle and Wurmser.
• Dumbest (expletive) guy on the planet.  —General Tommy Franks
• Seldom in my life have I met a dumber man.  —Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, chief of staff for Colin Powell
• Outspoken foe of the Oslo peace process and Camp David peace agreement.
• Leading member of the “Office of Special Plans” which relied on Chalabi to feed fake WMD info to the CIA.
• Employed Larry Franklin who was caught passing secrets to AIPAC lobbyists (for Israel), and with 38 Top Secret document in his home.

Connections to Iraq-War clique:  Chalabi,  Cheney, Wolfowitz, Perle, Bolton, Fairbanks, Wurmser

Robert Kagan

• Co-founder with Kristol of PNAC the main neocon lobby.
• Signer of 1998 PNAC letter to Clinton advocating Iraq War.
• His wife, Victoria Nuland, was National Security Advisor to Cheney from July 2003 until May 2005. Focused on Iraq.

William Kristol

• Co-founder and chairman of PNAC
• Son of neoconservative “godfather” Irving Kristol
• Editor of the neocon publication “The Weekly Standard.”

Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Chief of Staff to Vice President Cheney

• 1997, Signer of founding PNAC “Principles”
• Told two reporters that covert CIA agent Valerie Plame worked for the CIA
• This was Cheney’s retaliation against her husband, Wilson who accurately reported Niger had not sold Uranium to Saddam.
• Apparently part of a White-House-based plan of retribution/intimidation.
• Jail sentence commuted by Bush

Connections to Iraq-War clique: PNAC with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Bolton, Abrams.

Richard Perle, Defense Policy Board Chairman for Rumsfeld.

• 1996 Brings IASPS report to Israeli Prime Minister.
• 1970 Overheard discussing classified information with Israeli embassy.
• 1981 Brought Stephen Bryen into Defense Dept.
  • (Bryen had already been found passing classified information to Israel.  While in the position Perle gave him, supplied Israel with prohibited technology.)

Connections to Iraq-War clique:
1996,     IASPS, w/ Wurmser, Feith, Principal author of report explaining why Israel needed Saddam overthrown.
1997→, Member of PNAC with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Abrams, Bolton, Libby.

Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense.

• 1983 Lobbied Saddam for Trans-Iraqi oil pipeline.
• Aware Saddam was using WMD (poison gas) on Kurds during pipeline trip.
• Estimated war would take 5 weeks.
• 1969-71, Office of Econ. Opportunity, Hired Cheney.
• 1974-75, White House, Chief of Staff, Hired Cheney.
• 1996,     Running Dole’s campaign for President, meets Wolfowitz.
• 1997—, PNAC (signer of “Principles”) with  Cheney, Wolfowitz, Perle, Abrams, Bolton, Libby.
• 1998-00  Advisor to Bush campaign, w/ Cheney, Wolfowitz.
• 2001—  Sec. of Defense, Brings in Wolfowitz, Feith, Perle.

Paul Wolfowitz, Asst. Sec.of Defense till June 2005

• Wolfowitz–the intellectual godfather of the war–is its heart and soul. (12/29/2003, Time)
• Has worked for it since G.H.W. Bush left Saddam in power.
• A student of neocon gurus Strauss and Wohlstetter.
• Early associate of Perle.
• 1989-93, DOD under Cheney and over Libby.
• 1997, PNAC (Signer of “Principles”) with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Perle, Abrams, Bolton, Libby.

James Woolsey, Defense Policy Board Member.
• Former director of CIA 1993-95.

Connections to Other Neocons:
1995—, JINSA (Advisory Board Member) with
           Cheney, Wolfowitz, Feith, Perle, Bolton
1997—, PNAC with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Abrams, Bolton, Libby.

David Wurmser, Middle East Adviser to Cheney.

• 1996 Primary author of IASPS report to Israeli Prime Minster on why to remove Saddam.
• 1996 Writes “Coping with Crumbling States,” explaining why U.S. should help Israel remove Saddam.
• Chalabi is “mentor” for writing book on removing Saddam.
• 1999 Publishes book on why Saddam must go and why that’s good for Israel.
• 2001  Adviser to Bolton in State Department.
• 2003  Middle-East Adviser to Cheney.