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American Morning
2003: Case for War
Aired December 31, 2003 - 07:52 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's look back at the year 2003. Throughout the week, we've been taking time to do that. Today, we're going to focus on the war in Iraq.
Barbara Starr from the Pentagon is tracking that for us. Here's Barbara.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just days before the war begins, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is adamant that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction.
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: He claims to have no chemical or biological weapons, yet we know he continues to hide biological and chemical weapons, moving them to different locations as often as every 12 to 24 hours and placing them in residential neighborhoods.
STARR: With that, the U.S. and Britain begin decapitation of the Iraqi regime.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: At this hour, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq.
STARR: The military commander immediately vows there will be victory.
GEN. TOMMY FRANKS, FORMER CENTCOM COMMANDER: This will be a campaign unlike any other in history, a campaign characterized by shock, by surprise, by flexibility, and by the employment of precise munitions on a scale never before seen.
STARR: A lightning run to Baghdad by American armor, hundreds of journalists along for the ride as pictures come into American homes.
There are bad days -- POWs taken, then rescued. Private First Class Jessica Lynch becomes famous.
U.S. forces enter Baghdad. The first statue of Saddam Hussein falls. Looting begins.
Then, President Bush on May 1, another TV moment.
BUSH: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended in the battle of Iraq. The United States and our allies have prevailed. STARR: Then, a long, violent summer, an unexpected insurgency develops. The pictures are very different as the United Nations is bombed, dozens killed, and attacks become a daily event across Baghdad and other parts of Iraq.
In mid-December, the world is stunned. Saddam Hussein pulled from a hole in the ground, the man believed responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of his countrymen now in custody. At year-end, it is that picture that dominates the news.
There is no discussion of WMD, the reason for the war. Throughout the year, the price for victory continues to be paid by hundreds of families -- sons and daughters gone forever.
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(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 December 31, 2003 - 07:52 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's look back at the year 2003. Throughout the week, we've been taking time to do that. Today, we're going to focus on the war in Iraq.
Barbara Starr from the Pentagon is tracking that for us. Here's Barbara.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just days before the war begins, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is adamant that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction.
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: He claims to have no chemical or biological weapons, yet we know he continues to hide biological and chemical weapons, moving them to different locations as often as every 12 to 24 hours and placing them in residential neighborhoods.
STARR: With that, the U.S. and Britain begin decapitation of the Iraqi regime.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: At this hour, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq.
STARR: The military commander immediately vows there will be victory.
GEN. TOMMY FRANKS, FORMER CENTCOM COMMANDER: This will be a campaign unlike any other in history, a campaign characterized by shock, by surprise, by flexibility, and by the employment of precise munitions on a scale never before seen.
STARR: A lightning run to Baghdad by American armor, hundreds of journalists along for the ride as pictures come into American homes.
There are bad days -- POWs taken, then rescued. Private First Class Jessica Lynch becomes famous.
U.S. forces enter Baghdad. The first statue of Saddam Hussein falls. Looting begins.
Then, President Bush on May 1, another TV moment.
BUSH: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended in the battle of Iraq. The United States and our allies have prevailed. STARR: Then, a long, violent summer, an unexpected insurgency develops. The pictures are very different as the United Nations is bombed, dozens killed, and attacks become a daily event across Baghdad and other parts of Iraq.
In mid-December, the world is stunned. Saddam Hussein pulled from a hole in the ground, the man believed responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of his countrymen now in custody. At year-end, it is that picture that dominates the news.
There is no discussion of WMD, the reason for the war. Throughout the year, the price for victory continues to be paid by hundreds of families -- sons and daughters gone forever.
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(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.
