9-11 Commission: There is a Link Between Saddam and Al Qaeda

By Congressman Jeff Miller

It is astonishing to hear how some media outlets "know" so much and have the gall to think they can make our decisions for us. Allegations of a partisan 9-11 Commission do not hold much water when both political parties see a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda. Even a quick glance readily shows the support that the two terrorist groups extended to one another. The facts are in plain sight.

While one reporter states that President Bush is making statements that don’t fit with the Commission’s findings, the Democratic Vice-Chairman of the Commission and former Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence member, Lee Hamilton, tells us that the panel agrees that there are connections. The media are the ones making statements that are counter to the Commission’s findings, not President Bush. If The New York Times were to pay closer attention to the information, the risk of misinformation could be greatly reduced. Direct collaboration on September 11^th is not the issue; no assertions are being made that Saddam Hussein was directly involved in September 11^th. What anyone can easily see are numerous pieces of evidence tying the two groups together over a long period of time. Evidence of strong connections between Iraq and al Qaeda date back more than five years. Look at the staff statement: multiple meetings between an Iraqi intelligence officer and al Qaeda operatives, including bin Laden, took place in 1994. Look at the 1998 U.S. Federal Grand Jury Indictment: "Al Qaeda reached an agreement with Saddam Hussein to work cooperatively, particularly in weapons development." Relations between the two groups are not just a new, post-9/11, development.

Whatever the cultural differences between Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden’s Islamic sects, the two parties engaged each other’s support in a common dislike for the United States. Reading from certain news sources, you come under the impression you were misled by the Administration. Read the actual reports from the 9-11 Commission, listen to what President Bush actually says, and you realize that those certain news sources are doing the misleading. The amount of evidence surrounding linkage between Iraq and al Qaeda is enough to write a book; indeed, Stephen Hayes of the Weekly Standard has actually written a book outlining the multitude of connections, appropriately titled "The Connection."

Accusations arise that the White House has not produced enough evidence. Closer inspection shows that plenty has been produced to indicate a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda. More evidence is available from the past few years that is not even needed to show the connection.

Is it ethical or proper for the media to attempt to make decisions for you? Not for a minute. The New York Times tries to turn the most recent staff statement by the 9-11 Commission into a final conclusion. The Times is adamant that a meeting between Mohammed Atta and Iraqi agent al-Ani never took place. Their proof? A final conclusion that the meeting occurred was not in the staff statement. What is also not in the statement is a conclusion that the meeting did not take place. The Czech government still believes the meeting occurred, yet across the Atlantic Ocean others are trying to make that decision for them. Presumably, those same people can also tell us that the Sudan meetings never took place. Perhaps they would like to tell Russian President Vladimir Putin that he is wrong as well. His information that Iraq was planning attacks in the U.S. after 9-11 is well-founded, and the report of no connection between Saddam Hussein and the 9-11 attacks is exactly what President Bush has been saying the whole time.

Fortunately, many are still capable of deriving their own conclusions and seeing what is really there: a wealth of evidence supporting a strong connection between Iraq and al Qaeda in their common hatred of the United States of America.

Congressman Jeff Miller is a Republican U.S. Representative from Florida. This article originally appeared in the Pensacola News-Journal.

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