Wednesday's release of the 2.6 million word Chilcot Report in the UK — the result of an exhaustive seven year investigation into then British Prime Minister Tony Blair's 2003 decision to go to war in Iraq — opens up many old wounds, not the least of which is a painful reminder that those of us shouting about the 'Downing Street Memo' back in 2005 — the leaked memo citing the head of British intelligence charging the George W. Bush administration was "fixing" the "intelligence and facts…around the policy" of invading Iraq and removing Saddam Hussein no matter what — were right then and still right today.
"I have a real love-hate relationship with talking about Tony Blair, and what he did to make this war happen," The Intercept's Jon Schwarz, who writes about exactly that today, tells me on today's program. "On the one hand, it's fascinating. It's such a story of self-deceit, of deception of others, of unbearable sanctimonious, all in the service of a gigantic catastrophe and crime. So on the one hand, it's fascinating. On the other hand, it's horrifying. I feel great joy and agony discussing it again 13 years after it happened."
We discuss the details of the Chilcot Report today, how the mainstream corporate media ignored the Downing Street Memo back in 2005 ("It was front-page news in many places on Earth. It was not front-page news in the United States."), and whether or not there has been any real accountability or lessons learned ever since, by either politicians or corporate media alike. Also on today's program (speaking of lessons unlearned): Obama announces he will leave 8.400 U.S. troops in Afghanistan upon leaving office, and Gretchen Carlson, recently terminated by Fox "News", sues Roger Ailes, the Rightwing propaganda channel's boss, over disturbing claims of sexual harassment and discrimination.
