Want to learn how to build a nuclear bomb? Ask your Republican member of Congress:
Last March, the federal government set up a Web site to make public a vast archive of Iraqi documents captured during the war. The Bush administration did so under pressure from Congressional Republicans who had said they hoped to “leverage the Internet” to find new evidence of the prewar dangers posed by Saddam Hussein.
But in recent weeks, the site has posted some documents that weapons experts say are a danger themselves: detailed accounts of Iraq’s secret nuclear research before the 1991 Persian Gulf war. The documents, the experts say, constitute a basic guide to building an atom bomb.
Last night, the government shut down the Web site after The New York Times asked about complaints from weapons experts and arms-control officials.
So, are you saying is that Saddam did have a viable atomic weapons program?
By Joey de Vivre, at 9:47 AM
The records date back to at least the first Gulf War. I believe it's fairly well-established that Iraq was pursuing nuclear weapons in the 1990s, but the programs were halted due to sanctions and bombing.
Iraq probably had the intent and knowledge to build a nuclear weapon, but lacked the facilities and the raw material.