Tuesday, June 24, 2003

Iran-Contra, Part Deux?

John Bolton, the man with a plan for Iran, likes his facts a certain way. Or so says a State Department expert on chemical and biological weapons who claims he Bolton pressured him to change his analysis to suit Bolton's purposes.

WASHINGTON, June 24 � A top State Department expert on chemical and biological weapons told Congressional committees in closed-door hearings last week that he had been pressed to tailor his analysis on Iraq and other matters to conform with the Bush administration's views, several Congressional officials said today.

The officials described what they said was a dramatic moment at a House Intelligence Committee hearing last week when the weapons expert came forward to tell Congress he had felt such pressure.Mr. Westermann told lawmakers last week that while he felt pressure, he never actually changed the wording of any of his intelligence reports....

In a second hearing last week with the Senate Intelligence Committee, he made it clear that he had felt pressure from John Bolton, the under secretary of state for arms control and international security, that originally dated to a clash the two had over Mr. Bolton's public assertions last year that Cuba had a biological weapons program. Mr. Westermann argued those assertions were not supported by sufficient intelligence.

Good luck Mr. Westermann, you'll need it.

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