First Time for Everything

I don't think I've ever referenced here anything William Saletan has written. I'm not really sure why, but I should do a little research. I say this because his latest piece on Slate quickly and clearly debunks the two central claims made by Bush in his May 1 "victory speech": 1) we fought the war because Iraq had banned weapons; and 2) we fought the war because Iraq had links to al-Qaida. My favorite bit:

What does Bush have to say about the absence of evidence on these two points? "This much is certain," he observed in his victory address. "No terrorist network will gain weapons of mass destruction from the Iraqi regime, because the regime is no more."

Well, that's true. No terrorist network will get weapons from Pat Moynihan, either. That doesn't make his death essential to the war on terror.

Be sure to read the whole piece. There are some good supporting links there.