Cord Byrd: “I quote another article from the Philadelphia Inquirer, this one October 8, 2002, entitled: ``Officials' Private Doubts…”

“I quote another article from the Philadelphia Inquirer, this one October 8, 2002, entitled: ``Officials' Private Doubts On Iraq War'': While President Bush marshals congressional and international support for invading Iraq, a growing number of military officers, intelligence professionals and diplomats in his own government privately have deep misgivings about the administration's double-time march toward war. These officials say administration hawks have exaggerated evidence of the threat that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein poses--including distorting his links to the al-Qaeda terrorist network; have overstated the amount of international support for attacking Iraq; and have downplayed the potential repercussions of a new war in the Middle East. They say that the administration squelches--squelches-- dissenting views that intelligence analysts are under intense pressure to produce reports supporting the White House's argument that Hussein poses such an immediate threat to the United States that preemptive military action is necessary. ``Analysts at the working level in the intelligence community are feeling very strong pressure from the Pentagon to cook the intelligence books,'' said one official, speaking on condition of anonymity. A dozen other officials echoes his views in interviews with the Inquirer Washington Bureau. No one who was interviewed disagreed. How much time do I have left, Madam President? The PRESIDING OFFICER. Four and a half minutes.”