Here are some excerpts from a news item on Sen. Byrd:
The oldest voice in the U.S. Congress rose on Wednesday to offer a final pre-war warning that President Bush’s march to battle is dangerously misguided.
“Today I weep for my country,” said West Virginia Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd. “No more is the image of America one of strong, yet benevolent peacekeeper. … Around the globe, our friends mistrust us, our word is disputed, our intentions are questioned.”…
“We flaunt our superpower status with arrogance,” Byrd said, adding: “After war has ended the United States will have to rebuild much more than the country of Iraq. We will have to rebuild America’s image around the globe.”…
“The case this administration tries to make to justify its fixation with war is tainted by charges of falsified documents and circumstantial evidence,” Byrd said.
Despite administration suggestions to the contrary, Byrd said, “There is no credible information to connect Saddam Hussein to 9/11.”
The senator said, “We cannot convince the world of the necessity of this war for one simple reason. This is a war of choice.”
Byrd said that instead of negotiating, Washington demanded obedience or threatened recrimination. “Instead of isolating Saddam Hussein, we seem to have isolated ourselves.”