Joseph Lieberman in Decision Points, by Pres. George W. Bush

On Homeland Security: 2002: Made case to Bush for new Homeland Security Department

Shortly after 9/11, I appointed Governor Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania to a new senior White House position overseeing our homeland security effort. Tom brought valuable management experience, but by early 2002, it had become clear that the task was too large to be coordinated out of a small White House office. Source: Decision Points, by Pres. George W. Bush, p.155-156 Nov 9, 2010

On War & Peace: 2002 UN report on Iraq: a "12,000-page 100-pound lie"

When the UN deadline arrived on Dec. 7, 2002, Saddam submitted a report. I viewed it as a key test. If he came forward with honest admissions, it would send a signal that he understood the message the world was sending. Instead, he submitted reams of irrelevant paperwork clearly designed to deceive. Hans Blix, who led the UN inspections team, later called it, "rich in volume but poor in information." Joe Lieberman was more succinct. He said the declaration was a "12,000-page, 100-pound lie." Source: Decision Points, by Pres. George W. Bush, p.242 Nov 9, 2010

On War & Peace: OpEd: Cast aside by his party for supporting the Iraq war

On Jan. 10, 2007, [I made this speech]: "It is clear that we need to change our strategy in Iraq. So I've committed more than 20,000 additional American troops to Iraq. The vast majority of them--five brigades--will be deployed to Baghdad."

Amid the near-universal skepticism, a few brave souls defended the surge. Foremost among them were Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), a lifelong Democrat who had been cast aside by his party for supporting the war; Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC); and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).

I knew McCain planned to run for president in 2008. The surge gave him a chance to create distance between us, but he didn't take it. He had been a longtime advocate of more troops in Iraq, and he supported the new strategy wholeheartedly. "I cannot guarantee success," he said. "But I can guarantee failure is we don't adopt this new strategy."

Source: Decision Points, by Pres. George W. Bush, p.378-379 Nov 9, 2010

The above quotations are from Decision Points, by George W. Bush . Click here for other excerpts from Decision Points, by George W. Bush . Click here for other excerpts by Joseph Lieberman. Click here for a profile of Joseph Lieberman.
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Page last updated: Aug 18, 2011