For those looking for stunning new evidence about Iraq's weapons programs from Colin Powell's February 5 speech at the UN: don't bet on it.
At yesterday's Gaggle, Fleischer made the following comments:
Let me make a couple points about what Secretary Powell will do at the United Nations next week, as well as where we stand in the bigger picture about what is coming next vis-a-vis Iraq. The Secretary's presentation will take a look at what is known about Saddam Hussein and the threat he presents, and he will connect the dots. He will go before the Security Council to share with them information about why this is such a matter of grave concern and why the peace is threatened by Saddam Hussein's defiance of the United Nations, and Saddam Hussein's refusal to disarm.
When asked a second time if Powell would be presenting new evidence, he said:
Again, I think that he will, in effect, connect the dots about what is known. And I'm not going to make any more predictions beyond that about what the Secretary will say.
There's an extreme level of ambiguity throughout, except for one thing: this is a serious process. Fleischer used that particular phrase twice, and the word "process" five times, referring not to the buildup of forces, or to the war itself, but to the consultation with Europe and the UN. The public face the administration is putting on is that of diplomatic consultation, but it is indicating that the present "diplomatic window" will be of relatively short duration...weeks, not months.
It's also been made clear that President Bush believes that the information necessary to prompt the UN to take action is already available:
But I also submit to you, in the President's judgment, there's already a Mt. Everest of information, high enough to know that Saddam Hussein has weapons and is willing to use them. From the President's point of view, making Mt. Everest higher is not necessary to disarm Saddam Hussein.
So, in effect, the President is saying to the UN: you're going to have to decide to support us or not based upon information that is already available. Which means that he is drawing a line in the sands of diplomatic procedure: this is it. This is all you'll get. If that's not enough...well, let's hope that the President meant it when he said that America's purpose is to achieve a result, not follow a process.
