BILL CLINTON WAS WRONG ABOUT IRAQ

Despite the 3 statements I found that shows Clinton much preferred to have the U.N. weapons inspectors finish their job, Matt Yglesias found this item written by Clinton that was published in the Guardian on March 18, 2003, a mere 2 days before the invasion. In it, Clinton neglects the important progress the inspectors had already made and, most important, the fact that they weren't finding anything:

Saddam has destroyed some missiles but beyond that he has done only what he thinks is necessary to keep the UN divided on the use of force. The really important issues relating to chemical and biological weapons remain unresolved.

In the Guardian piece, Clinton laments that Blair's time-table resolution wasn't adopted by the U.N. and concludes that an invasion is now inevitable. He absolves Blair of responsibility:

Blair is in a position not of his own making, because Iraq and other nations were unwilling to follow the logic of 1441.

AND falls back on the old "trust us" meme:

Now in another difficult spot, Prime Minister Blair will have to do what he believes to be right. I trust him to do that and hope that Labor MPs and the British people will too.

Greg Sargent has more.