What Hillary said about her vote on the Iraq Resolution:
“If we get the resolution that President Bush seeks, and if Saddam complies [with inspectors], disarmament can proceed and the threat can be eliminated.”
I was given a book by Al Franken the other day, and in it was this quote from John Kerry as to why he intended to vote for the Iraq resolution:
“As the President made clear earlier this week, ‘Approving this resolution does not mean that military action is imminent or unavoidable.’ It means "America speaks with one voice:'
Let me be clear, the vote I will give to the President is for one reason and one reason only: to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass
destruction, if we cannot accomplish that objective through new, tough weapons inspections in joint concert with our allies.
In giving the President this authority, I expect him to fulfill the commitments he has made to the American people in recent days-to work with the United Nations SecurityCouncil to adopt a new resolution setting out tough and immediate inspection requirements, and to act with our allies at our side if if we have to disarm Sad dam Hussein by force. If he fails to do so, I will be among the first to speak out. “
and this from Hans Blix
"HANS BLIX, Executive Chairman of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), said that since UNMOVIC’s twelfth quarterly report had been finalized 10 days ago, a number of relevant events had taken place. Since 27 November 2002, when inspections in Iraq had resumed, relatively few difficulties had been faced relating to process, notably, prompt access to sites. That might well be due to the strong outside pressure. Some practical matters had been resolved at meetings in Baghdad. Initial difficulties raised by the Iraqi side about helicopters and aerial surveillance planes operating in the no-fly zones had been overcome. Inspectors were now able to perform professional no-notice inspections all over Iraq and to increase aerial surveillance."
Some people saw that resolution as an effort to AVOID war. Once the inspectors had the access they needed the war should not have happened.
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