Counting On New Friends

["Nayirah" testifying at the Human Rights Caucus] ‘While I was there I saw the Iraqi soldiers come into the hospital with guns. They took the babies out of the incubators, took the incubators, and left the children to die on the cold floor.’ [CBC journalist] ‘The President repeated the incubator story 6 times in his verbal war against Saddam.’ Three hundred babies had died, the President said. But the girl who gave the testimony… [CBC journalist] ‘…..wasn’t just a simple Kuwaiti escapee. In fact, just a few seats away was her father, Kuwait’s Ambassador to thе United States and Canada.’ …a fact known to the organizеrs of the hearing. [Unnamed news reporter #1] ‘Citizens for a Free Kuwait wanted to get public opinion behind a full scale commitment […] so they paid over 10 million dollars to America’s biggest Public Relations Company: Hill and Knowlton Inc.’ [Dee Alsop of Hill & Knowlton] ‘…which is about what it is for a Presidential campaign.’ [Unnamed news reporter #1] ‘Most ordinary Americans didn’t care about Kuwait.’ [Dee Alsop] ‘So the efforts were – what is it that we can do to emotionally motivate people to support actions through the UN to drive them out?’ [George Bush] ‘Saddam’s power will only grow […] The next conflict will find him stronger still, perhaps in possession even of nuclear weapons.’ Many still opposed the war, and Congress had not voted. They were willing… [Thomas Foley, speaker – US House of Representatives] ‘….they were willing to have a vote as long as the outcome was more or less certain to be, er, supportive of the administration.’ Bush doubled the troops to 400,000. [George Bush] ‘I know in my heart of hearts that what we are doing is right.' (Right, right, right, right...) [Unnamed news reporter #1] ‘Unable to count on the support of Congress, the administration turned to the United Nations.’ [James Baker] ‘If we could get the Soviet Union to agree to the use of force, China would not veto. It was decided that I would visit with each and every government on the Security Council.’ Debts were written off, loans granted to China, Russia, Israel, Iran… ‘incentives’ totalling $23 billion. Resolution 678 authorised the use of: ’…all necessary means to: '…restore international peace and security in the area.' [John Major, UK prime minister] ‘It is at this stage quite impossible to determine in detail precisely what that may mean.’ [Tunisian Foreign Minister] ‘This is a very bad precedent for the Security Council. Who knows who's next in line?’ [Unknown #1] ‘Will those in favour of the draft resolution please raise their hand….’ [Unnamed news reporter #2] ‘China abstained and Yemen and Cuba actually voted against the resolution.’ [Unknown #2] ‘Thank you. The draft resolution has been adopted as 678.’ [Unnamed news reporter #2] ‘The next day, all US aid to Yemen was cancelled.’ [Unknown #3] ‘Secretary of State, thank you for bringing us very closely in contact with these realities.’ [Unknown #2] ‘This meeting is adjourned.’ [Robert Gates] ‘The United Nations can now play the kind of role we all have hoped for a long time it could play.’ Iraq was given until January 15th to withdraw. [George Bush] ‘I have today directed the Secretary of Defence to increase the size of US forces […] to ensure that the coalition has an adequate offensive military option.’ [Unnamed news reporter #3] ‘Sent in the early days of the crisis to defend Saudi Arabia, it began to look as if they might be used to attack Iraq.‘ Across the world people demonstrated as the Allies readied for an assault. [Unknown #3] ‘If there is an ideal time for war in the desert, it’s before March, but that drastically shortens the time for sanctions to bite.’ Shortly before the deadline... [Unnamed news reporter #4] ‘Shortly before the deadline, hopes were raised, when Iraq’s Foreign Minister, Tariq Aziz and the US Secretary of State James Baker, met in Geneva.’ [George Bush] ‘To go the extra mile for peace…’ Bush wrote a letter to Saddam Hussein. [James Baker] ‘He read the letter; didn’t say a word and then he looked at me and he said: "I cannot accept this letter".' [Tariq Aziz] 'When it comes to the Arabs, there you raise the stick.' [Unknown #2] ‘..to authorise the use of United States armed forces, pursuant to...’ With four days to go the Senate voted. [Unnamed news reporter #5] ‘In the debate the incubator story came up seven times.’ [Unknown #2] ‘On this vote, the yays are 52 and the nays are 47.’ [George Bush] ‘This will not be…another Vietnam. […] We will not permit our troops to have their hands tied behind their backs. And I pledge to you there will not be any murky ending.’