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CNN Live At Daybreak
Blair Gets Standing 'O'
Aired July 18, 2003 - 06:07 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It was a fast trip for the British prime minister. He's on his way to Tokyo this morning. But his brief stop in the United States is certainly memorable. As "The Washington Post" puts it this morning, by the time Blair finished speaking before Congress its members seemed ready to weep with gratitude.
CNN's Elaine Quijano takes you through the day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Members of Congress showed their respect for the man who stood firmly with the U.S. before and during the Iraq war, the British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We know Iraq under Saddam gave haven to and supported terrorists.
QUIJANO: Blair's visit comes just as Democrats and others are leveling intense criticism at the Bush administration. Hours before his appearance, questions again swirled on the Senate floor.
SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Did this nation go to war based on flawed, incomplete, exaggerated or misused intelligence?
QUIJANO: Critics question whether White House officials misled the country about the reliability of pre-war intelligence on Iraq, specifically President Bush's statement that, according to British intelligence, Iraq was seeking uranium from Africa. One source for the statement was documents claiming Iraq was trying to get uranium from Niger, but it turns out those were forged.
After his speech to Congress, Blair defended his claim during an appearance with President Bush at the White House.
BLAIR: The British intelligence that we have we believe is genuine. We stand by that intelligence.
QUIJANO: And President Bush said this when asked about those now infamous 16 words regarding Iraq seeking uranium from Africa:
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I take responsibility for putting our troops into action, and I made that decision because Saddam Hussein was a threat to our security.
QUIJANO (on camera): Also on the agenda for the two men to discuss is the fate of two British terror suspects, who are right now being detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and who could eventually face the death penalty, something most Britains adamantly oppose.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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 July 18, 2003 - 06:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It was a fast trip for the British prime minister. He's on his way to Tokyo this morning. But his brief stop in the United States is certainly memorable. As "The Washington Post" puts it this morning, by the time Blair finished speaking before Congress its members seemed ready to weep with gratitude.
CNN's Elaine Quijano takes you through the day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Members of Congress showed their respect for the man who stood firmly with the U.S. before and during the Iraq war, the British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We know Iraq under Saddam gave haven to and supported terrorists.
QUIJANO: Blair's visit comes just as Democrats and others are leveling intense criticism at the Bush administration. Hours before his appearance, questions again swirled on the Senate floor.
SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Did this nation go to war based on flawed, incomplete, exaggerated or misused intelligence?
QUIJANO: Critics question whether White House officials misled the country about the reliability of pre-war intelligence on Iraq, specifically President Bush's statement that, according to British intelligence, Iraq was seeking uranium from Africa. One source for the statement was documents claiming Iraq was trying to get uranium from Niger, but it turns out those were forged.
After his speech to Congress, Blair defended his claim during an appearance with President Bush at the White House.
BLAIR: The British intelligence that we have we believe is genuine. We stand by that intelligence.
QUIJANO: And President Bush said this when asked about those now infamous 16 words regarding Iraq seeking uranium from Africa:
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I take responsibility for putting our troops into action, and I made that decision because Saddam Hussein was a threat to our security.
QUIJANO (on camera): Also on the agenda for the two men to discuss is the fate of two British terror suspects, who are right now being detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and who could eventually face the death penalty, something most Britains adamantly oppose.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
