BACK ON THE OFFENSIVE:

Rumsfeld Defends Preemption Doctrine (Bradley Graham, February 8, 2004, Washington Post)

Rumsfeld's unyielding remarks surprised many of the conference participants. In recent weeks, the Bush administration has made a point of trying to move relations with European allies beyond last year's divisions over the Iraq war and toward a focus on new cooperative initiatives against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. In the process, the administration also has been seeking more European troops for operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

At last year's conference -- an annual event that draws several hundred senior government officials and national security experts, mostly from European countries -- Rumsfeld clashed openly with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer over Washington's reasons for preparing to invade Iraq. This year, many had expected Rumsfeld to strike a measured tone. Most other speeches and remarks during the day were notably free of contention. [...]

"It was his choice," Rumsfeld said of Hussein. "If the Iraqi regime had taken the steps Libya is now taking, there would have been no war."

Facing some critical audience questions afterward, Rumsfeld became animated and loud at times. Asked what the United States could do to improve its much-deteriorated image in the world, Rumsfeld blamed news coverage by Arab television networks for contributing to the decline by promoting "highly negative" stories.

"I know in my heart and brain that America ain't what's wrong with the world," he said.

Cutting through the air with his hands for emphasis, he recalled the situation in Iraq before the war, "with people being tortured, rape rooms, mass graves, gross corruption, a country that had used chemical weapons on its own people."

"There were prominent people from represented countries in this room that opined that they really didn't think it made a hell of a lot of difference who won," he said, looking out at the packed hotel conference room. "Shocking. Absolutely shocking."

It's a mistake to accede to the idea that a nation need be a WMD threat to us in order to justify pre-emptive action. Anyplace with "people being tortured, rape rooms, mass graves, gross corruption, a country that had used chemical weapons on its own people" deserves liberation. In fact, we should do Cuba just to prove the point.

Given the defenses of the war by Colin Powell and Mr. Rumsfeld, one would expect a more combative George Bush on Meet the Press tomorrow.

MORE:
Rumsfeld Fervently Defends Iraq War to European Critics: The defense secretary placed the blame for the war squarely on Saddam Hussein for his "deception and defiance." (ERIC SCHMITT, 2/08/04, NY Times)

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 7, 2004 11:56 PM