Why Did Bush Surrender?

What a difference a year makes. Last summer, the raging debate in Washington was over 16 words in George W. Bush’s State of the Union speech. “The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa,” the president had said on January 28, 2003, as he made the case for war in Iraq. By March, some Democrats had begun to claim the sentence was a lie. By May and June, the issue had grown acrimonious. By July, it was full-scale political war.

Now, one year later, with the publication of investigative reports from the Senate Intelligence Committee in Washington and the Butler inquiry in London, it appears the president was right all along. British intelligence—and American intelligence, and other intelligence agencies as well—did indeed have substantial reason to believe that Saddam Hussein had sought uranium in Africa.

About the Author

Byron York

Byron York is a former White House correspondent for National Review.

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What a difference a year makes. Last summer, the raging debate in Washington was over 16 words in George W. Bush’s State of the Union speech. “The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa,” the president had said on January 28, 2003, as he made the case for war in Iraq. By March, some Democrats had begun to claim the sentence was a lie. By May and June, the issue had grown acrimonious. By July, it was full-scale political war.

Now, one year later, with the publication of investigative reports from the Senate Intelligence Committee in Washington and the Butler inquiry in London, it appears the president was right all along. British intelligence—and American intelligence, and other intelligence agencies as well—did indeed have substantial reason to believe that Saddam Hussein had sought uranium in Africa.