# Rumsfeld Faces The Nation, And Stammers - Author: Joichi Ito - Date: 2004-03-16T21:40:20Z Video clip of Rumseld on Face The NationFace The NationSCHIEFFER: Well, let me just ask you this. If they did not have these weapons of mass destruction, though, granted all of that is true, why then did they pose an immediate threat to us, to this country? Sec. RUMSFELD: Well, you're the--you and a few other critics are the only people I've heard use the phrase "immediate threat." I didn't. The president didn't. And it's become kind of folklore that that's--that's what's happened. The president went... SCHIEFFER: You're saying that nobody in the administration said that. Sec. RUMSFELD: I--I can't speak for nobody--everybody in the administration and say nobody said that. SCHIEFFER: Vice president didn't say that? The... Sec. RUMSFELD: Not--if--if you have any citations, I'd like to see 'em. Mr. FRIEDMAN: We have one here. It says "some have argued that the nu"--this is you speaking--"that the nuclear threat from Iraq is not imminent, that Saddam is at least five to seven years away from having nuclear weapons. I would not be so certain." Sec. RUMSFELD: And--and... Mr. FRIEDMAN: It was close to imminent. Sec. RUMSFELD: Well, I've--I've tried to be precise, and I've tried to be accurate. I'm s-- Mr. FRIEDMAN: "No terrorist state poses a greater or more immediate threat to the security of our people and the stability of the world and the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq." Sec. RUMSFELD: Mm-hmm. It--my view of--of the situation was that he--he had--we--we believe, the best intelligence that we had and other countries had and that--that we believed and we still do not know--we will know.via Steven Johnson via Center for American Progress While I'm at it... This reminds me that I was moved by Colin Powell's speech in Davos about WMD and he spoke convincingly about his belief in WMD. I was almost convinced about the need to go into Iraq based solely on the WMD argument. Also... Here is a trailer from The Truth Uncovered of a video they are making for distribution about this topic. via Wirefarm --- #### Categories US Policy and Politics, Warblogging