David Thomas: “I rise to discuss similarly what our floor leader said a few moments ago in terms of this bill before us. We are here to…”

“I rise to discuss similarly what our floor leader said a few moments ago in terms of this bill before us. We are here to talk about the Defense appropriations. We have gone on now for a couple of days focusing on this matter of uranium from Africa. It seems to me that we need to focus on the issue that is before us and that is supporting our troops where they are, the Defense appropriations that we have, and probably the most important, certainly the largest appropriations that is before us. I have been listening now for some days and listening to the media, the charge that the 16 words President Bush uttered during his January State of the Union have been false. This is what he said: The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa. That is what was said. So we say this may be false because in fact the British Government continues to stand by the assertion even if the CIA does not. So what Mr. Bush said about what the British believed was true in January, and it is still true today. That is what the British believed. Now do we need to take a look at our intelligence system? Of course, that is very important to us. But anyone who thinks every piece of intelligence is going to have certified truthfulness behind it, of course, is being naive. Because that is not the way things work. It is so clear this is so political that it really is kind of hard to accept.”