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CNN Live At Daybreak

President Bush, Prime Minister Blair Battle Back

Aired July 18, 2003 - 06:30   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: President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair are defending claims they lied to the world to justify the war on Iraq. Blair spoke before a joint meeting of Congress yesterday. He stood by British intelligence that indicated Iraq was trying to buy uranium to help rebuild its nuclear weapons program. Both Blair and President Bush have been under fire for the discredited claim.
We want to get more now from the White House. Let's go live to Washington and Dana Bash.

Good morning -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

You know, in a different climate this might have been considered the meeting of two victors after President Bush at least declared major combat in Iraq over more than two months ago. But, as you said, this is a very different climate. This is a climate where the two men are both under fire for questionable pre-war intelligence. So, instead what you had was two men, two leaders, almost turning back the hands of time and having to defend and to justify and explain why they felt the need to go to war against Saddam Hussein.

Now, the CIA, at least in the U.S., has taken responsibility for that one now infamous line getting into the president's State of the Union address, and President Bush was asked if he, too, bears responsibility, and here's the way he answered that question:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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 and was a threat to the security of other nations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, government sources say that in a closed Senate hearing on Wednesday there was testimony of exactly the point of contact between the White House and the CIA, saying it was NSC official Robert Joseph talking to CIA official Alan Foley about exactly how to phrase and what to exactly put into the president's State of the Union address. But despite Democrats saying that the White House was pressuring the CIA to get in intelligence that was, at that point they say, questionable already, the White House is denying that, calling that nonsense, saying there was absolutely no pressure at all.

But, Carol, the senators are still looking for answers from the White House, and Senate Intelligence Chairman Pat Roberts said yesterday he is likely to call some members of the White House to interview them, perhaps for testimony behind closed doors at some point in the near future -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Dana Bash reporting live from Washington this morning. Many thanks.

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 - 06:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair are defending claims they lied to the world to justify the war on Iraq. Blair spoke before a joint meeting of Congress yesterday. He stood by British intelligence that indicated Iraq was trying to buy uranium to help rebuild its nuclear weapons program. Both Blair and President Bush have been under fire for the discredited claim.
We want to get more now from the White House. Let's go live to Washington and Dana Bash.

Good morning -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

You know, in a different climate this might have been considered the meeting of two victors after President Bush at least declared major combat in Iraq over more than two months ago. But, as you said, this is a very different climate. This is a climate where the two men are both under fire for questionable pre-war intelligence. So, instead what you had was two men, two leaders, almost turning back the hands of time and having to defend and to justify and explain why they felt the need to go to war against Saddam Hussein.

Now, the CIA, at least in the U.S., has taken responsibility for that one now infamous line getting into the president's State of the Union address, and President Bush was asked if he, too, bears responsibility, and here's the way he answered that question:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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 and was a threat to the security of other nations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, government sources say that in a closed Senate hearing on Wednesday there was testimony of exactly the point of contact between the White House and the CIA, saying it was NSC official Robert Joseph talking to CIA official Alan Foley about exactly how to phrase and what to exactly put into the president's State of the Union address. But despite Democrats saying that the White House was pressuring the CIA to get in intelligence that was, at that point they say, questionable already, the White House is denying that, calling that nonsense, saying there was absolutely no pressure at all.

But, Carol, the senators are still looking for answers from the White House, and Senate Intelligence Chairman Pat Roberts said yesterday he is likely to call some members of the White House to interview them, perhaps for testimony behind closed doors at some point in the near future -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Dana Bash reporting live from Washington this morning. Many thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.