Senate MINORITY Leader Harry Reid and Dick (Turban) Durbin seem to be at the helm of what the George Soros / moveon.org wing of the Democrat party have been demanding them to do, to throw the hail mary, to accuse the administration of, you've heard it before, of lying about the WMD / George Wilson / Valerie Wilson Plame, in order to go to war with Iraq. So Senate is in closed session right now having the political knock-down drag-out.
It's a stunt for sure, but they must feel it's all they have left. Their Supreme Court judicial nominee fight is one they figure to lose, and there is just too much time between now and the the '06 & '08 elections for them to continue to dodge the fact that they have no agenda, so a stunt like this will keep the Soros money coming their way, else become a third party to the wacko left. They are responding to people like this who make the contributions and who form their agenda:
The Democrat Party is dead as an opposition party, period--if Hillary, a Bush cheerleader, is the best they've got, kiss it goodbye altogether.
Their hope is to make enough noise, long enough, to fool the American people into believing that 'Bush lied and people died' and electing them back into the leadership.
From democrats.com's Bob Fertik:
It's been 5 long years since George Bush stole the White House, 4 years since he failed to prevent 9/11 and then seized dictatorial powers through the USA Patriot Act, and 3 years since he started selling the invasion of Iraq on the basis of pure lies.
For 5 long years, we've been urging Democrats in Congress to fight back.
 Today, finally, Harry Reid and the Senate Democrats stood up for Truth, Justice, the American Way - and the majority of Americans who oppose Bush's far-right agenda. Reid's speech was powerful:
http://www.democrats.com/node/6673
Democrats forced the Senate into an unusual closed session to discuss the Senate Intelligence Committee Chair's refusal to conduct the "phase 2" investigation into White House war lies that his committee agreed in February 2004 to conduct. Republicans howled in outrage at being outmaneuvered by the Democrats, but ultimately they capitulated and agreed to issue the long-promised report by November 14.
This is a huge, fantastic victory.
And you, the members of Democrats.com, deserve a lot of the credit - because for 5 years, you stubbornly refused to accept the order from the White House, the Republican Party, and the Republican-controlled media to "get over it" - Stolen Election 2000.It's an act of desperation. Watch them crash and burn. Why not? If Bush was in such bad shape, politically speaking, don't you think they'd just sit and watch the Republicans destroy themselves? They know that isn't in the cards, so they feel they have to do this, the country and military soldiers and families be damned.
Reid's speech was less than powerful, rather, it was the spiel of the extreme left wing of the Democrat party's supporters, rather, the Reid, Durbin, Kennedy triumvirate has been usurped by or caved in to their more rabid supporters. Reid's speech was the usual rants of the left. As follows:
 This past weekend, we witnessed the indictment of the I. Lewis Libby, the Vice President’s Chief of Staff and a senior Advisor to President Bush. Libby is the first sitting White House staffer to be indicted in 135 years. This indictment raises very serious charges. It asserts this Administration engaged in actions that both harmed our national security and are morally repugnant.
The decision to place U.S. soldiers in harm’s way is the most significant responsibility the Constitution invests in the Congress. The Libby indictment provides a window into what this is really about: how the Administration manufactured and manipulated intelligence in order to sell the war in Iraq and attempted to destroy those who dared to challenge its actions.
As a result of its improper conduct, a cloud now hangs over this Administration. This cloud is further darkened by the Administration’s mistakes in prisoner abuse scandal, Hurricane Katrina, and the cronyism and corruption in numerous agencies.
And, unfortunately, it must be said that a cloud also hangs over this Republican-controlled Congress for its unwillingness to hold this Republican Administration accountable for its misdeeds on all of these issues.
Let’s take a look back at how we got here with respect to Iraq Mr. President. The record will show that within hours of the terrorist attacks on 9/11, senior officials in this Administration recognized these attacks could be used as a pretext to invade Iraq.
The record will also show that in the months and years after 9/11, the Administration engaged in a pattern of manipulation of the facts and retribution against anyone who got in its way as it made the case for attacking Iraq.
There are numerous examples of how the Administration misstated and manipulated the facts as it made the case for war. Administration statements on Saddam’s alleged nuclear weapons capabilities and ties with Al Qaeda represent the best examples of how it consistently and repeatedly manipulated the facts.
The American people were warned time and again by the President, the Vice President, and the current Secretary of State about Saddam’s nuclear weapons capabilities. The Vice President said Iraq “has reconstituted its nuclear weapons.” Playing upon the fears of Americans after September 11, these officials and others raised the specter that, left unchecked, Saddam could soon attack America with nuclear weapons.
Obviously we know now their nuclear claims were wholly inaccurate. But more troubling is the fact that a lot of intelligence experts were telling the Administration then that its claims about Saddam’s nuclear capabilities were false.
The situation was very similar with respect to Saddam’s links to Al Qaeda. The Vice President told the American people, “We know he’s out trying once again to produce nuclear weapons and we know he has a longstanding relationship with various terrorist groups including the Al Qaeda organization.”
The Administration’s assertions on this score have been totally discredited. But again, the Administration went ahead with these assertions in spite of the fact that the government’s top experts did not agree with these claims.
What has been the response of this Republican-controlled Congress to the Administration’s manipulation of intelligence that led to this protracted war in Iraq? Basically nothing.
....There is also another disturbing pattern here, namely about how the Administration responded to those who challenged its assertions. Time and again this Administration has actively sought to attack and undercut those who dared to raise questions about its preferred course.
For example, when General Shinseki indicated several hundred thousand troops would be needed in Iraq, his military career came to an end. When then OMB Director Larry Lindsay suggested the cost of this war would approach $200 billion, his career in the Administration came to an end. When U.N. Chief Weapons Inspector Hans Blix challenged conclusions about Saddam’s WMD capabilities, the Administration pulled out his inspectors. When Nobel Prize winner and IAEA head Mohammed el-Baridei raised questions about the Administration’s claims of Saddam’s nuclear capabilities, the Administration attempted to remove him from his post. When Joe Wilson stated that there was no attempt by Saddam to acquire uranium from Niger, the Administration launched a vicious and coordinated campaign to demean and discredit him, going so far as to expose the fact that his wife worked as a CIA agent.
Given this Administration’s pattern of squashing those who challenge its misstatements, what has been the response of this Republican-controlled Congress? Again, absolutely nothing. And with their inactions, they provide political cover for this Administration at the same time they keep the truth from our troops who continue to make large sacrifices in Iraq.
This behavior is unacceptable. The toll in Iraq is as staggering as it is solemn. More than 2,000 Americans have lost their lives. Over 90 Americans have paid the ultimate sacrifice this month alone – the fourth deadliest month since the war began. More than 15,000 have been wounded. More than 150,000 remain in harm’s way. Enormous sacrifices have been and continue to be made.
The troops and the American people have a right to expect answers and accountability worthy of that sacrifice. For example, 40 Senate Democrats wrote a substantive and detailed letter to the President asking four basic questions about the Administration’s Iraq policy and received a four sentence answer in response. These Senators and the American people deserve better.
They also deserve a searching and comprehensive investigation about how the Bush Administration brought this country to war. Key questions that need to be answered include:
o How did the Bush Administration assemble its case for war against Iraq?
o Who did Bush Administration officials listen to and who did they ignore?
o How did senior Administration officials manipulate or manufacture intelligence presented to the Congress and the American people?
o What was the role of the White House Iraq Group or WHIG, a group of senior White House officials tasked with marketing the war and taking down its critics?
o How did the Administration coordinate its efforts to attack individuals who dared to challenge the Administration’s assertions?
o Why has the Administration failed to provide Congress with the documents that will shed light on their misconduct and misstatements?
Unfortunately the Senate committee that should be taking the lead in providing these answers is not. Despite the fact that the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee publicly committed to examine many of these questions more than 1 and ½ years ago, he has chosen not to keep this commitment. Despite the fact that he restated that commitment earlier this year on national television, he has still done nothing.
At this point, we can only conclude he will continue to put politics ahead of our national security. If he does anything at this point, I suspect he will play political games by producing an analysis that fails to answer any of these important questions. Instead, if history is any guide, this analysis will attempt to disperse and deflect blame away from the Administration.
We demand that the Intelligence Committee and other committees in this body with jurisdiction over these matters carry out a full and complete investigation immediately as called for by Democrats in the committee’s annual intelligence authorization report. Our troops and the American people have sacrificed too much. It is time this Republican-controlled Congress put the interests of the American people ahead of their own political interests. 
2:01:21 PM 
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