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Negroponte Faces Tough Questions from Democrats
Aired January 30, 2003 - 11:24 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Topic A on Capitol Hill this hour is the Iraqi weapons inspection report. Two senior Bush administration officials are testifying today before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
CNN's Jonathan Karl joins us from Capitol Hill, and Jonathan, we heard from one, Ambassador John Negroponte, who says -- or reiterated, rather, that the window -- the diplomatic window is closing on Iraq.
JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. We've heard from John Negroponte, the ambassador to the U.N., and also from the Deputy Secretary of State, Richard Armitage, and they have both made that point quite clear. As a matter of fact, Mr. Armitage made the point that Iraq has, he said, weeks not months to deal with this issue diplomatically before facing the threat of force.
And Armitage made the case in quite stark terms of the danger that Iraq poses in terms that especially hit home to members of the Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD ARMITAGE, DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE: In October of 2001, less than a teaspoon of anthrax in an envelope brought chaos to this body. Several hundred of your employees had to undergo emergency medical treatment. The building next door was closed, and ultimately, two members of the Postal Service died and the building in which they worked has yet to reopen.
Saddam Hussein, according to UNSCOM, the special commission, has 25,000 liters of anthrax. That's over 5 million teaspoons of anthrax, and he has yet to account for a single grain. That is why we're so alert.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KARL: Stark message there from the deputy secretary of state, who, along with John Negroponte, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, making the case that Iraq is running out of time, and also getting a little bit of a preview in terms of what we can expect from Secretary of State Colin Powell when he goes before the U.N. Security Council next week, to make the case on Iraq.
But both gentlemen are facing some tough questions from the committee, especially from Democrats. Some Democrats questioning, if we have the inspectors on the ground, if more inspectors are going in, what's the rush? Why not give the inspectors more time? And then, from the top Democrat on the panel, Joe Biden, making the case that he thinks the administration has been arguing this in the wrong way to the world community, making the wrong case on Iraq. He says it should be a different argument. Listen to what Biden said in very harsh language.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: He made a commitment to the world, several commitments. Enforcing that, if necessary, is not preemption -- is not preemption, whatever the hell that doctrine is supposed to mean. And so I really think you -- I would respectfully suggest that when you talk about this, do not further confuse the devil out of the rest of the world and make us sound like a bunch of cowboys, that we are going to be out there preemptively imposing our view.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KARL: Biden is saying the case simply needs to be made that Saddam Hussein has not abided by the agreement that ended the Gulf War back in 1991, and we shouldn't be making the argument about preemption. This is just the first -- not even the first, but this is just one of many appearances by senior administration officials on Iraq here on Capitol Hill.
As a matter of fact, Colin Powell will be back here next week, the day after his appearance before the Security Council. He'll be before the United States Senate and that Foreign Relations Committee, making the case here to the members of Congress -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Jonathan Karl, thank you from Capitol Hill.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 30, 2003 - 11:24 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Topic A on Capitol Hill this hour is the Iraqi weapons inspection report. Two senior Bush administration officials are testifying today before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
CNN's Jonathan Karl joins us from Capitol Hill, and Jonathan, we heard from one, Ambassador John Negroponte, who says -- or reiterated, rather, that the window -- the diplomatic window is closing on Iraq.
JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. We've heard from John Negroponte, the ambassador to the U.N., and also from the Deputy Secretary of State, Richard Armitage, and they have both made that point quite clear. As a matter of fact, Mr. Armitage made the point that Iraq has, he said, weeks not months to deal with this issue diplomatically before facing the threat of force.
And Armitage made the case in quite stark terms of the danger that Iraq poses in terms that especially hit home to members of the Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD ARMITAGE, DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE: In October of 2001, less than a teaspoon of anthrax in an envelope brought chaos to this body. Several hundred of your employees had to undergo emergency medical treatment. The building next door was closed, and ultimately, two members of the Postal Service died and the building in which they worked has yet to reopen.
Saddam Hussein, according to UNSCOM, the special commission, has 25,000 liters of anthrax. That's over 5 million teaspoons of anthrax, and he has yet to account for a single grain. That is why we're so alert.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KARL: Stark message there from the deputy secretary of state, who, along with John Negroponte, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, making the case that Iraq is running out of time, and also getting a little bit of a preview in terms of what we can expect from Secretary of State Colin Powell when he goes before the U.N. Security Council next week, to make the case on Iraq.
But both gentlemen are facing some tough questions from the committee, especially from Democrats. Some Democrats questioning, if we have the inspectors on the ground, if more inspectors are going in, what's the rush? Why not give the inspectors more time? And then, from the top Democrat on the panel, Joe Biden, making the case that he thinks the administration has been arguing this in the wrong way to the world community, making the wrong case on Iraq. He says it should be a different argument. Listen to what Biden said in very harsh language.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: He made a commitment to the world, several commitments. Enforcing that, if necessary, is not preemption -- is not preemption, whatever the hell that doctrine is supposed to mean. And so I really think you -- I would respectfully suggest that when you talk about this, do not further confuse the devil out of the rest of the world and make us sound like a bunch of cowboys, that we are going to be out there preemptively imposing our view.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KARL: Biden is saying the case simply needs to be made that Saddam Hussein has not abided by the agreement that ended the Gulf War back in 1991, and we shouldn't be making the argument about preemption. This is just the first -- not even the first, but this is just one of many appearances by senior administration officials on Iraq here on Capitol Hill.
As a matter of fact, Colin Powell will be back here next week, the day after his appearance before the Security Council. He'll be before the United States Senate and that Foreign Relations Committee, making the case here to the members of Congress -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Jonathan Karl, thank you from Capitol Hill.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
