Doonesbury.com's The War in Quotes is a startling account of the Iraq War, told entirely in the words of those who conceived, planned, advocated, and executed it. Presented in chronological order in thematic groups against a timeline of key events, this astonishing record of remarks both public and private speaks for itself, chronicling the dramatic unfolding of America's first preventative war.THAT WAS THENOnce you've got Baghdad, it's not clear what you do with it. It's not clear what kind of government you put in place. How much credibility is that government going to have if it's set up by the U.S. military? --Dick Cheney, 1991MIND-SETF*** Saddam. We're taking him out. --George W. Bush, to three U.S. senators, March 2002WMDIf the president wants to go to war, our job is to find the intelligence to allow him to do so. --Alan Foley, director, CIA Weapons Intelligence, to staff, December 2002THE PLANThere was no guidance for restoring order in Baghdad, creating an interim government, hiring government and essential services employees, and ensuring that the judicial system was operational. --3rd Infantry Division's official after-action reviewINSURGENCYI really qualify it as militarily insignificant. They are very small. They are very random. They are very ineffective. --Maj. Gen. Ray Odierno, June 18, 2003REALITYDoes [the Iraq war strategy] make America safer? --Sen. John WarnerI don't know, actually. --Gen. David Petraeus, in Senate testimony, September 11, 2007
