By DOUGLASS K. DANIEL

(











WASHINGTON (AP) - A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The study concluded that the statements "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses."

The study was posted Tuesday on the Web site of the Center for Public Integrity, which worked with the Fund for Independence in Journalism.

White House spokesman Scott Stanzel did not comment on the merits of the study Tuesday night but reiterated the administration's position that the world community viewed Iraq's leader, Saddam Hussein, as a threat.

"The actions taken in 2003 were based on the collective judgment of intelligence agencies around the world," Stanzel said.

The study counted 935 false statements in the two-year period. It found that in speeches, briefings, interviews and other venues, Bush and administration officials stated unequivocally on at least 532 occasions that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or was trying to produce or obtain them or had links to al-Qaida or both.

"It is now beyond dispute that Iraq did not possess any weapons of mass destruction or have meaningful ties to al-Qaida," according to Charles Lewis and Mark Reading-Smith of the Fund for Independence in Journalism staff members, writing an overview of the study. "In short, the Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003."

Named in the study along with Bush were top officials of the administration during the period studied: Vice President **** Cheney, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz and White House press secretaries Ari Fleischer and Scott McClellan.

Bush led with 259 false statements, 231 about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and 28 about Iraq's links to al-Qaida, the study found. That was second only to Powell's 244 false statements about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and 10 about Iraq and al-Qaida.

The center said the study was based on a database created with public statements over the two years beginning on Sept. 11, 2001, and information from more than 25 government reports, books, articles, speeches and interviews.

"The cumulative effect of these false statements - amplified by thousands of news stories and broadcasts - was massive, with the media coverage creating an almost impenetrable din for several critical months in the run-up to war," the study concluded.

"Some journalists - indeed, even some entire news organizations - have since acknowledged that their coverage during those prewar months was far too deferential and uncritical. These mea culpas notwithstanding, much of the wall-to-wall media coverage provided additional, 'independent' validation of the Bush administration's false statements about Iraq," it said.

---

On the Net:

Center For Public Integrity: http://www.publicintegrity.org/default.aspx

Fund For Independence in Journalism: http://www.tfij.org/

its politics............THYE ALL LIE,whats the big freakin deal??

only hundreds of thousands dead men women and children and a trillion d ollars of our hard earned tax money, immeasurable human suffering , grieving widows and parents and siblings ...etc etc etc

Its the government a government that lies and manipulates is wrong. People should be able to believe what the government says, If they lied to get us to go to war, and kill houndreds of thousands of people. What else do they lie about how can we trust them after there lies kill people?

I believe the families of the lost 4000 soldiers would care about these lies.

I remember when he made the freudian slip during his interview with Katie Couric "the hardest part of his job had been connecting Iraq to al queda" I never laughed so hard. He is so full of sh*t. I get so dam angry whenever I think of the greatest crime committed against America after 9/11, it was GW.

Dubya lied??? Next someone is going to tell me there's no Santa Claus

I figure that the bush crime family,and associates(worst of the worst) should surely wake up this nation of people , and if they fail to wake us up ,then there is not much hope left for this country. I think bush ,cheny, rice and accomplices should be put on trial for war crimes , murder and treason, just for starters, and those in the JUST US(justice) department for not doing there job(malfeasance of office) ,that they are getting paid to do. And cut off all their benefits and retirement programs. I think these people are willfully violating(criminal offenses) our Constitution.The washington district of criminals have this mighty nation down on its knees. Time to call them to account. I hear that there is a corporation or two etc,GAIA ,Cosmos seafood Marketing---worth trillions of dollars, and has offered to pay off the national debt if we put our govt on trial and a few little side agreements(giving the govt back to WE THE PEOPLE .)for one.Also going back to the Constitution ,I think was another one of the TERMS. That means they have to step down and be put on trial.WE THE PEOPLE could DO THIS!!! I understand that the private federal reserve system owes this amount and possibly more ,payable in GOLD. I am going to guess that they owe around 614,500 tons of Gold payable in GOLD on RECORD!!! OLD GEORGE BUSH might want to explain this to you in detail!!! I don't think that the (not)federal (no) reserve system can make their payment ,I hear that it has become overdue, if you know what that means. Some one suggested What if they do not pay? the answer went something like this: THEY DAMN WELL BETTER BETCHA So it sounds to me that at this minute the (not )federal (no) reserves (non) banks are in deep doo doo, what ever that means.

And this is new information....ROTF..!!

Headline: "Sun Comes Up In East" --