Fairy Tale Theater -- Iraq edition

I have been trying to spread this story since I saw it in March; thank goodness for the Daily Mis-leader. This from yesterday's edition:

BUSH REJECTED PLANS TO GO AFTER TOP TERRORIST

In his effort to claim he is the strongest candidate on national security, President Bush has lately been speaking a lot about how he is doing everything possible to track down terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi[1] - the man thought to be responsible for escalating attacks on U.S. soldiers in Iraq.[2] But according to NBC News, it was Bush who in 2002 and 2003 rejected three plans to strike and neutralize Zarqawi because he believed a successful strike would undermine the public case for targeting Saddam Hussein.

As NBC News reported, "Long before the war, the Bush administration had several chances to wipe out his terrorist operation and perhaps kill Zarqawi himself - but never pulled the trigger." In June 2002, the Pentagon drafted plans to attack a camp Zarqawi was at with cruise missiles and airstrikes. The plan was killed by the White House. Four months later, as Zarqawi planned to use ricin in terrorist attacks in Europe, the Pentagon drew up a second strike plan, yet "the White House again killed it." In January 2003, the Pentagon drew up still another attack plan, and for the third time, the White House killed it.[3]

According to NBC, "Military officials insist their case for attacking Zarqawi's operation was airtight, but the administration feared destroying the terrorist camp in Iraq could undercut its case for war against Saddam."[4]

Zarqawi is thought to be at least indirectly responsible for hundreds of U.S. casualties. Just yesterday, Zarqawi's terrorist group beheaded an American civilian in Baghdad.[5]

Sources:
1. "President's Remarks to the General Conference of the National Guard Association of the United States," The White House, 9/14/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=3465739&l=56809.
2. "Going after Iraq's most wanted man," The Christian Science Monitor, 9/21/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=3465739&l=56810.
3. "Avoiding attacking suspected terrorist mastermind," NBC News, 3/02/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=3465739&l=56811.
4. Ibid, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=3465739&l=56811.
5. "Zarqawi Group Beheads U.S. Hostage Armstrong," Reuters, 9/20/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=3465739&l=56812.

This story has ABSOLUTELY NOT BEEN REFUTED and there have been several attempts by journalists to follow up.

By the way, Zarqawi's connnections to Al Qaeda are vague, and even before the war he was in Iraq in the Northern area controlled by our allies the Kurds and patrolled by U.S. airplanes. You do remember that before the war we controlled the airspace over two-thirds of Iraq, right? You remember that the sanctions, while not a very humane or ideal solution, were keeping Saddam contained at a far lower cost than we are now spending? And, of course, how can you forget that UN weapons inspectors were IN IRAQ, that Iraq had filed a report disclosing its arms and "weapons-related-program-activities"? But you also remember that the Bush administration refused to believe the report because it didn't confess to WMD and Al Qaeda links that were nonexistant. Finally, you, dear reader, are certainly not among the nearly two-thirds of the American people who continue to suspect that Saddam had something to do with 9/11. Right? My readers gave up believing in fairy tales years ago. Didn't you?

[Update: I feel the need to add a reminder that this guy Zarqawi is a very, very bad person and he is responsible for numerous American deaths and great instability in Iraq. He truly is the enemy to Americans and to the Iraqi people.]