And this man wants to be president?

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Source: Raw Story - John Byrne

US intelligence agency confuses Iran with Iraq in report about Israeli strike

"George W. Bush is not stupid," Jon Stewart told a crowd in 2005. "He invaded Iraq. They didn’t have weapons of mass destruction or ties to Al Qaeda … but Iran does. So he was only one letter off and that should be credited."

The Agency that brought you bogus intelligence on the Iraq war — a Defense Intelligence Agency operative who knew that a key US intelligence source was unreliable sat in on meetings with then-Secretary of State Colin Powell when he incorporated claims about mobile Iraqi weapons labs into his portfolio — now brings you the Iran that is actually Iraq.

In a brief official history of their own agency, posted on their website (pdf here), the DIA confused Iran and Iraq.

Noting "world crises" in the 1980s, the agency’s report cites “an Israeli F-16 raid to destroy an Iranian nuclear reactor.” (See page 14)

The discrepancy was first caught by the Federation of American Scientists’ Steven Aftergood, who writes the blog Secrecy News.

In fact, Israel attacked an Iraqi nuclear reactor — Osirak — in 1981. Israel has not attacked Iranian nuclear sites — or at least, not yet.

“The description appears to match Israel’s raid on Iraq’s [Osirak] nuclear reactor” in 1981, Israeli scholar Gideon Remez told Aftergood on his blog. “Today’s preoccupation with Iran’s nuclear program seems to have been projected onto the events of 27 years ago.”

“If that is indeed the case, I’d recommend a correction,” he added.

The Defense Intelligence Agency, which authored the report, could not be reached for comment.

The DIA isn’t the only one who’s made gauche comments about Iran recently. On an official visit to the Middle East that was supposed to highlight his knowledge in foreign affairs, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) told reporters, "It’s common knowledge and has been reported in the media that Al-Qaeda is going back into Iran and receiving training and are coming back into Iraq. That’s well known."

Pressed by reporters, who knew there were no reporters that Al-Qaeda was being trained in Iran, McCain continued.

"We continue to be concerned about the Iranians taking Al-Qaeda into Iran and training them and sending them back," he said.

Only after fellow Senator Joe Lieberman, who was traveling with him, whispered into his ear, did McCain correct himself.

"I am sorry, the Iranians are training extremists, not Al-Qaeda, not Al-Qaeda, I am sorry," McCain said.

With AFP.

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McCain Calls For Global League Of Democracies

Published on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.





Source: USA Today

WASHINGTON — John McCain urged more U.S. engagement with the world on Wednesday, including the creation of a new global warming plan and a global "League of Democracies."
"We cannot build an enduring peace based on freedom by ourselves," McCain said in an address to the Los Angeles World Affairs Council.

He did not offer any new proposals in the speech, instead repackaging ideas he had developed during the Republican primary campaign.

McCain defended the Iraq war, condemned torture of terrorism suspects, advocated free trade, urged Russian's expulsion from the G-8 alliance of nations, and said "dealing with a rising China will be a central challenge for the next American president."

Russia should be expelled from the G-8 because of its rollback of democracy, McCain said, while rising economic powers Brazil and India should be invited in.

The former Navy pilot and Vietnam POW also stressed his desire for peaceful relations among nations, telling the crowd, "I detest war."

McCain said the question of whether the al-Qaeda terrorist group operated in Iraq before the war is "immaterial," because they are there now and will use a U.S. withdrawal to proclaim victory.

"Civil war in Iraq could easily descend into genocide, and destabilize the entire region as neighboring powers come to the aid of their favored factions," McCain said.

Democratic National Committee Chariman Howard Dean said Wednesday McCain's call for global cooperation rings hollow given his support for the Iraq invasion of 2003.

"John McCain's empty rhetoric today can't change the fact that he has steadfastly stood with President Bush from day one and is now talking about keeping our troops in Iraq for 100 years," Dean said. "His new appreciation for diplomacy has no credibility after he mimicked President Bush's misleading case for a unilateral war of choice when it mattered most. Why should the American people now trust John McCain to offer anything more than four more years of President Bush's reckless economic policies and failed foreign policy?"

The Arizona senator and presumptive Republican presidential nominee only mentioned Iran in connection with North Korea, saying the United States should block the nuclear ambitions of both nations. He did describe Iran as "a nation whose president has repeatedly expressed a desire to wipe Israel from the face of the Earth."

McCain also skipped over some recent events, such as China's crackdown on Tibet. He said the United States has "numerous overlapping interests" with the communist nation. "But until China moves toward political liberalization, our relationship will be based on periodically shared interests rather than the bedrock of shared values," McCain said.

He devoted most of his speech to "the transcendent challenge of our time: The threat of radical Islamic terrorism."

"Prevailing in this struggle will require far more than military force," McCain said. "It will require the use of all elements of our national power."

That includes diplomacy. McCain also said the United States must be a good model for the rest of the world. In addition to condemning terror, he said "we should close Guantanamo and work with our allies to forge a new international understanding on the disposition of dangerous detainees under our control."

McCain ended by saying he wants to be president because "more than any other nation on earth," the United States should lead "in building the foundations for a stable and enduring peace."

McCain appeared to be talking to critics who say he has been "overly aggressive" with provocative comments about Iran, Iraq and Russia, said Derek Chollet, a senior fellow with the Center for a New American Security.

"It seems to be more of a speech of re-assurance," Chollet said. "And it was an implicit contrast with the Bush administration."

McCain also seemed to break with the policies from President Bush's first term, in which the United States often acted alone, said Walter Russell Mead, a foreign policy analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations. Mead noted that Bush has spoken more of global cooperation in his second term, and McCain wants to continue that effort.

"The big themes (of McCain's speech) are deepening cooperation with Europe, deepening cooperation with Latin American and the Southern Hemisphere," Mead said.

That includes McCain's call for a League of Democracies. Mead called it a "nice idea" that speaks to frustration with the United Nations because China and Russia can veto anything the U.N. might want to do.

But it's impractical to think a league of democracies could replace the U.N., not only because it might exclude China and perhaps Russia must also many authoritarian regimes in Africa and the Middle East, Mead said.

"It's easier talk about this kind of thing than actually put it together," Mead said.

Chollet said some conservatives oppose the league because of suspicion of international institutions, while liberals worry about alienating China and Russia. But Chollet said it can't hurt to have an organization promoting democratic values worldwide.

"I am one of those who is, 'the more the merrier,'" Chollet said.

McCain, long a proponent of the League of Democracies, said it "can harness the vast influence of more than one hundred democratic nations around the world to advance our values and defend our shared interests."

He delivered the speech within days of returning from a trip to the Middle East and Europe.

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His age rather concerns me, 72 isn't old but it's getting on up there.