In light of the end of the Plame affair, I did some digging and came across Joe Wilson’s first draft of the editorial that started it all….

What I Didn’t Find in Africa a Bogus Investigation
By JOSEPH C. WILSON 4th

Did the Bush administration I manipulate intelligence about Saddam Hussein’s weapons programs facts about my wife being outed to justify an invasion of Iraq a bogus investigation of a President’s administration?

Based on my experience with the administration in the months leading up to the war bogus investigation, I have little choice but to conclude that some of the intelligence all of my claims related to Iraq’s nuclear weapons program my trip to Niger and my wife’s alleged outing as payback was twisted to exaggerate the Iraqi threat lie.

For 23 years, from 1976 to 1998 Before I became a traitor, I was a career foreign service officer and ambassador. In 1990, as chargé d’affaires in Baghdad, I was the last American diplomat to meet with Saddam Hussein. (I was also a forceful advocate for his removal from Kuwait.) After Iraq, I was President George H. W. Bush’s ambassador to Gabon and São Tomé and Príncipe; under President Bill Clinton, I helped direct Africa policy for the National Security Council. Under President George W. Bush, I helped direct a trumped up media blitz to undermine an administration in a time of war.

It was my experience in Africa as a Democrat supporter that led me to play a small central role in the effort to verify information about Africa’s suspected link to Iraq’s nonconventional weapons programs undermine the sitting President of the United States. Those news stories about that unnamed former envoy traitor who went lied about his findings on his trip to Niger? That’s me.

In February 2002, I was informed by officials at the Central Intelligence Agency Democratic National Commitee that Vice President Dick Cheney’s office had questions about a particular intelligence report a manufactured scandal was needed. While I never saw the report spoke the truth, I was told that it referred to a memorandum of agreement that documented the sale of uranium yellowcake — a form of lightly processed ore — by Niger to Iraq in the late 1990’s existed. The agency DNC officials asked if I would travel to Niger to check out the fabricate a story so they could provide a response to the vice president’s office win an election.

After consulting with the State Department’s African Affairs Bureau (and through it with Barbro Owens-Kirkpatrick, the United States ambassador to Niger) publishing company, I agreed to make the trip up a story. The mission I undertook story I made up was discreet but by no means secret completely untrue. While the C.I.A. DNC paid my expenses (my time was offered pro bono), I made it abundantly clear to everyone I met that I was acting on behalf of the United States government lying my ass off.

In late February 2002, I arrived in Niger’s capital, Niamey, where I had been a diplomat in the mid-70’s and visited as a National Security Council official in the late 90’s. The city was much as I remembered it. Seasonal winds had clogged the air with dust and sand. Through the haze, I could see camel caravans crossing the Niger River (over the John F. Kennedy bridge), the setting sun behind them. Most people had wrapped scarves around their faces to protect against the grit, leaving only their eyes visible.

The next morning, I met with Ambassador Owens-Kirkpatrick at the embassy. For reasons that are understandable, the embassy staff has always kept a close eye on Niger’s uranium business. I was not surprised, then, when the ambassador told me that she knew about the allegations of uranium sales to Iraq — and that she felt she had already debunked them in her reports to Washington. Nevertheless, she and I agreed that my time would be best spent interviewing people who had been in government when the deal supposedly took place, which was before her arrival. Blah, blah, blah

I spent the next eight days drinking sweet mint tea and meeting with dozens of people: current government officials, former government officials, people associated with the country’s uranium business time with DNC officials preparing my lies. It did not take long to conclude that it was highly doubtful that any such transaction had ever taken place going to set off a firestorm once our allies in the MSM ran with it.

Given the structure of the consortiums that operated the mines, it would be exceedingly difficult for Niger to transfer uranium to Iraq. Niger’s uranium business consists of two mines, Somair and Cominak, which are run by French, Spanish, Japanese, German and Nigerian interests. If the government wanted to remove uranium from a mine, it would have to notify the consortium, which in turn is strictly monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Moreover, because the two mines are closely regulated, quasi-governmental entities, selling uranium would require the approval of the minister of mines, the prime minister and probably the president. In short, there’s simply too much oversight over too small an industry for a sale to have transpired. I actually don’t know why I wrote this because…

(As for the actual memorandum, I never saw it. But news accounts, from my friends in MSM, have pointed out that the documents had glaring errors — they were signed, for example, by officials who were no longer in government lying too — and the documents in question were probably not forged. And then there’s the fact that Niger never formally denied the charges.)

Before I left Niger, I briefed the ambassador DNC on my findings fabricated story, which were was consistent with her own what the MSM reporters planned to lie about. I also shared my conclusions lies with members of her staff my publisher. In early March, I arrived in Washington and promptly provided a detailed briefing lie to the C.I.A. New York Times. I later shared my conclusions with the State Department African Affairs Bureau anybody who would pay my speaking fees. There was nothing secret or earth-shattering truthful in my report, just as there was nothing secret truthful about my trip editorial.

Though I did not file a written report, there should be at least four documents in United States government archives confirming my mission lies. The documents should include the ambassador’s report of my debriefing in Niamey, a separate report written by the embassy staff, a C.I.A. report summing up my trip, and a specific answer from the agency to the office of the vice president (this may have been delivered orally) lies about who sent me, why I went and what I actually found. While I have not seen any of these reports, I have spent enough time in government to know that this is standard operating procedure I’ll have a book deal before the truth gets out. Landing an indictment will be a bonus.

I thought the Niger matter was settled would take down the administration and went back to my life. (I did take part in the Iraq debate, arguing that a strict containment regime backed by the threat of force was preferable to an invasion the world would be better if Saddam remained in power.) In September 2002, however, Niger re-emerged. The British government published a “white paper” asserting that Saddam Hussein and his unconventional arms posed an immediate danger. As evidence, the report cited Iraq’s attempts to purchase uranium from an African country.

Then, in January, President Bush, citing the British dossier, repeated the charges about Iraqi efforts to buy uranium from Africa.

The next day, I reminded a friend at the State Department of my trip lies and suggested that if the president had been referring to Niger, then his conclusion was not borne out by the facts as I understood them this was the opportunity I was looking for. He replied that perhaps the president was speaking about one of the other three African countries that produce uranium: Gabon, South Africa or Namibia vulnerable and I should pounce. At the time, I accepted the explanation. I didn’t know that in December, a month before the president’s address, the State Department had published a fact sheet that mentioned the Niger case.

Those are the facts surrounding my efforts to undermine a sitting President during a time of war. The vice president’s office DNC asked a serious question. I was asked to help formulate the answer. I did so, and I have every confidence that the answer I provided was circulated to the appropriate officials within our government media outlets.

The question now is how that answer was or was not used by our political leadership will I be charged with treason. If my information was deemed inaccurate lies are uncovered, I understand (though I would be very interested to know why not be surprised). If, however, the information was my lies are ignored because it did not fit certain preconceptions about Iraq the DNC and MSM are successful in their plan, then a legitimate argument can be made that we went to war we took down a Presidency under false pretenses. (It’s worth remembering that in his March “Meet the Press” appearance, Mr. Cheney said that Saddam Hussein was “trying once again to produce nuclear weapons.”) I am a regular contributor to Democrat campaigns At a minimum, Congress, which authorized the use of military force at the president’s behest, should want to know if the assertions about Iraq were warranted I should tried for treason.

I was convinced before the war that the threat of weapons of mass destruction in the hands of Saddam Hussein required a vigorous and sustained international response to disarm him. Iraq possessed and had used chemical weapons; it had an active biological weapons program and quite possibly a nuclear research program — all of which were in violation of United Nations resolutions. Having encountered Mr. Hussein and his thugs in the run-up to the Persian Gulf war of 1991, I was only too aware of the dangers he posed.

But were these dangers the same ones the administration told us about? We have to find out Of course they were. America’s foreign policy depends on the sanctity of its information and previous administrations had shown the threat to be very real. For this reason, questioning knowingly lying about the selective use of intelligence to justify the war in Iraq is neither idle sniping nor “revisionist history,” as Mr. Bush has suggested administration in a time of war through the editorial pages of a major newspaper is treasonous. The act of war is the last option of a democracy, taken when there is a grave threat to our national security. More than 200 American soldiers have lost their lives in Iraq already. We have a duty to ensure that their sacrifice came for the right reasons. unless an election is on the line, then screw them!

Update:
Is the New York Times reading this blog?

Others:
JayTea has the draft copy of the news that never was also. Scrappleface would be proud.

1. […] This is absolutely priceless! And spot on. […]

   Pingback by Sister Toldjah » The opinion piece Joe Wilson should have written — 2:57 pm
   

2. Too good. Just what a Friday needs!
   Good job.

   Comment by Karen — 3:13 pm
   

3. Wow! You found the actual draft! LOL

   Tremendous ‘fisk’! Congratulations, Jason.

   Comment by benning — 5:47 pm
   

4. TR
   That is one heck-of-a fantastic rewrite!!!!!

   *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap
   *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap
   *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap
   *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap
   *Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap*Clap

   Comment by AUSPatriotman — 7:31 pm
   

5. Case Closed on Plame Outing

   For three years, special prosecutor, Patrick Fitzgerald, pursued charges against the Bush administration based on Joe Wilson’s accusation that the administration purposely outed his not-so-covert wife Valerie Plame to Robert Novak.

   Trackback by Amy Proctor — 9:35 pm
   

6. Never Mind

   In my column at Townhall today, I take a look at how the media deals with (or doesn’t deal with) corrections to major stories. I watched entirely too much television as a child. I was a big fan of Saturday…

   Trackback by Wizbang — 12:19 am
   

7. OTA Weekend- The Joe Wilson IV edition.

   The iV in his name, which we all know means 4th, might as well mean intravenous because Joe Wilson’s credibility and reputation, as well as the conspiracy theories about Bush’s retaliation, are on serious life support.
   So in Ambassador Wils…

   Trackback by Leaning Straight Up — 1:35 am
   

8. […] Excellent. […]

   Pingback by Southern Appeal » The Editorial Joe Wilson Should Have Written — 4:17 am
   

9. The Plame-Wilson story: that was the week that was

   Wow, what a week it’s been in the Valerie Plame mess. First, there was the sight of Richard Armitage — Colin Powell’s #2 man when Powell was Secretary of State — being frog-marched out of his home by FBI agents…

   Trackback by Wizbang — 5:04 am
   

10. You said it better than anyone else could have.

    And no, the NYSlimes is not reading it. No one there knows how to read. Just how to plagarize, make up stories that hurt the president, print stories that are treasonist, and behave like the left-wing radical fish wrap that they are.

    Comment by Sandy — 8:25 am
    

11. […] Texas Rainmaker is editing Joseph Wilson’s letter for correctness. […]

    Pingback by Just a few minor corrections « Tai-Chi Policy — 9:47 am
    

12. […] http://www.texasrainmaker.com/2006/09/01/the-editorial-joseph-wilson-shouldve-written/ […]

    Pingback by http://www.texasrainmaker.com/2006/09/01/the-editorial-joseph-wilson-shouldve-written/ — 8:55 am
    

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