An informal Congressional hearing led by Michigan Democrat John Conyers was held on Thursday to further discuss the latest disclosures from the 'Downing Street memo.' The memo is a set of documents from the British government which analyzed the situation in Iraq on July 23, 2002, prior to the American-led invasion of that country.
The documents, which were published by the 'Times of London,' indicate that President Bush had already made up his mind to take out Saddam Hussein and was using intelligence reports about weapons of mass destruction (WMD) to justify his decision to the American people despite the fact that such intelligence was known to be 'weak.'
Sir Richard Dearlove, the head of British intelligence, was quoted as saying, 'The intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy,' rather than the other way around.
New York Democrat Jerrold Nadler was visibly upset by the findings. He told the Associated Press that Mr. Bush 'may have deliberately deceived the United States to get us into a war. Was the president of the United States a fool or a knave?'
Congressional Republicans scheduled 11 major votes to coincide with the Democrats' meeting to minimize attendance and press coverage.
Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed in combat in Iraq told the assembled members of Congress, 'We have not been told the truth. If this administration doesn't have anything to hide, they should be down here testifying.'
Other members of Congress were also upset with the evidence found in the Downing Street Memos. 'Quite frankly, evidence that appears to be building up points to whether or not the president has deliberately misled Congress to make the most important decision a president has to make, going to war,' said New York Democrat Charles Rangel. Misleading Congress is an impeachable offense.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan tried to dismiss the meeting calling Mr. Conyer's 'an individual who voted against the war in the first place and is simply trying to rehash old debates that have already been addressed.'
'And our focus is not on the past,' Mr. McClellan said. 'It's on the future and working to make sure we succeed in Iraq.'
Since Democrats are a minority in both houses of Congress, it is unlikely any serious investigation into the Downing Street memo will be forthcoming. But for the families of the more than 1,700 soldiers that have already lost their lives in Iraq, that is anything but reassuring.
