Plan of Attack
For the Half Life 2 mod see Plan of Attack (computer game)For the Chicago Hardcore band see Organized Crime Records |
Cover of Plan of Attack by Bob Woodward |
Plan of Attack (ISBN 074325547X) is a
2004 book by the well known
author and
investigative reporter Bob Woodward. It was promoted as "a behind-the-scenes account of how and why
President Bush decided to go to war against
Iraq" [
1]
The book's chief contention, which provides the rationale for its title, is that President Bush planned from early in his presidency to remove
Saddam Hussein from power by force, rather than making any serious effort to use diplomacy or other means. The book describes
White House deliberations implying that if Saddam were removed from power without a military invasion, Iraq would need a foreign-implemented
regime change.
Plan of Attack picks up where Woodward's previous work,
Bush at War left off, focusing on the decisions making that lead up to the U.S. lead
War in Iraq. As a result of the broad access Woodward was granted to the
White House and to interview Bush administation officials, the book is able to paint a realistic picture of what happened behind the scenes. Woodward's own approach is to resist making judgements about the war itself, but rather try to describe the decision-making process. As a result of refraining to interpret the story that he presents, Woodward has been described as being both opposed to the Bush administration by some, as well as an apologist of the administration by others.
Woodward describes in
Plan of Attack a small group of administration officials including
Vice-President Dick Cheney and
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld who were urging the President to go to war in Iraq beginning shortly after the attacks of
September 11, 2001.
Secretary of State Colin Powell and
General Tommy Franks are described as being part of a group within the government more skeptical of the plan to invade a Iraq.
In the narrative,
President Bush is described as having been intent on exercising a policy of
regime change with regard to
Iraq immediately after
9/11, a perspective that remained largely unchanged throughout the debates that would follow.
In the book,
Secretary of State Colin Powell is depicted as being increasingly at odds with members the Bush administration, and even goes as far as to reject some of the evidence put forward on
weapons of mass destruction. However, by the end of the book, Powell ultimately endorses the invasion effort, a decision which is not entirely explained, other than to suggest Powell may have lined up with the President out of a sense of duty.
The Bush Administration's own view of
Plan of Attack is interesting. When the book was published the administration denied many of the accounts in the book, but the Bush/Cheney re-election campaign listed Woodward's book as recommended reading nevertheless. (The Kerry/Edwards campaign also listed the book as recommended reading.)
As in
Bush at War, Woodward has been accused of giving a perhaps overly positive view of
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) special operations. While in
Bush at War he presents the CIA's cooperation with the
Afghan Northern Alliance.
* Bob Woodward says Bush decided that the US would invade Iraq on
January 11,
2003. In interviews,
Donald Rumsfeld and
Condoleezza Rice have stated the decision was much later - not until March.
*In the book,
CIA director George Tenet is noted as stating the evidence that
Saddam Hussein had
weapons of mass destruction was "a
slam dunk." Later, Tenet is forced to admit that his intelligence was flawed when months of post-war searches turned up nothing.
*Woodward paints Bush as concerned that the
United Nations (U.N.) weapons inspectors in
Iraq were cheating or being cheated. In particular, he reports that
Hans Blix was concealing some of his findings. There is no later published data to indicate this is the case.
* Woodward portrays
Secretary of State Colin Powell as reluctant to go to war and often at odds with other Bush administration officials. Powell has stated for the record that he was always fully supportive of the administration and its efforts to invade Iraq, although he wanted tens- or hundreds-of-thousands more soldiers on the ground.
* General Tommy Franks calls Pentagon official
Douglas Feith "the fucking stupidest guy on the face of the earth." In his biography, American Soldier, Tommy Franks clarified the context of this phrase by stating that he was talking to his subordinates who were upset with Rumsfeld.
*
Excerpts from book on washingtonpost.com*
George W. Bush suggested reading list mentions Plan of Attack*
John Kerry official blog describes Plan of Attack
