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American Morning
Interview With Nancy Pelosi
Aired September 05, 2002 - 07:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Now back to the issue of Iraq. Representative Nancy Pelosi of California was invited to the White House meeting yesterday with the president, where the administration outlined its strategy, and the House minority whip joins us from our Washington bureau this morning.
Good morning. Glad to have you back here on AM -- welcome.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), CALIFORNIA: Good morning, Paula.
ZAHN: So, did the president tell you anything that would convince you that going with this congressional resolution that, I guess he is going to ask for in advance of the November elections, is the way to go? Will you support it?
PELOSI: Well, first of all, I think it was great that the president consulted with members of Congress, at least in that meeting yesterday. I was pleased that he said that he would come to Congress for approval for a resolution of approval, and that he would make his administration available for hearings, so that we could get the information.
As far as I'm concerned, I haven't seen the intelligence. I am the senior Democrat in the House on the Intelligence Committee, and I have not seen the intelligence to justify the action that the president is suggesting. I hope that -- there is no question, of course, that Saddam Hussein is an evil person, does terrible things, is a threat in the region, and we'd like to see him removed from power.
The question, however, is: What is the threat that he poses to the United States? And before we ask the American people to put our children in harm's way, I think we have to have some answers. What is the threat? What is the political alternative if we have regime change, regime changed to what? We can terminate the regime of Saddam Hussein perhaps, but change it to what?
And as has been said in your report, this will entail a long-term occupation of American troops in the region. It also, I think, has a possibility of jeopardizing some of our relationships that help us in the war against terrorism.
So, there are many questions that have arisen that we are all listening for answers to, and hope that if the president has the intelligence to justify the threat that he is suggesting, that he will share that information with Congress. ZAHN: Well, let me ask you this. There was a report in one newspaper this morning that suggested Saddam Hussein was well aware of the 9/11 attacks six weeks, potentially, before they even happened. If that's the case, would that be enough new information to convince you military against -- action against Iraq is the way to go?
PELOSI: Well, I don't -- I am not familiar with that report. I would say, though, that if there is any connection between Saddam Hussein and the attacks on the U.S. that that would be -- that would change the situation. But it would have to be that he would be the intellectual author or that he would have given support. Just having knowledge -- again, we're putting our young people in harm's way to the tune of hundreds of thousands of troops in the region.
If we want to take out Saddam Hussein, I think that we have to exhaust every diplomatic remedy first to make sure that he is not targeting the U.S. with weapons of mass destruction. And then, we have to make a judgment about what connection he may have had to September 11.
Not being familiar with that report, I don't know what that is, but knowledge of it may be something quite different than being a supporter and party to.
No one disagrees with the president that Saddam Hussein -- it's sad to say in a magnificent country, which is the cradle of civilization, is acting in a way -- his behavior is outside the circle of civilized human behavior. There is no question about that.
But the question is: Do we put our young people at risk in order to make sure that he is not developing weapons of mass destruction? Or do we try to exhaust every diplomatic remedy first, and try to build support among our allies for this diplomatic initiative? Failing that, to build support in the region as well. Because many of the countries in the region are assisting us in the war against terrorism. That's the war we're engaged in. I don't want us to take our eye off of that ball. That poses a real danger to the United States.
If Saddam Hussein had anything to do with September 11 in a material way, I think that that would, yes, indeed, change the equation.
ZAHN: All right, California Representative Nancy Pelosi, thanks so much for joining us this morning. We look forward to having you back as this debate continues.
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