Did Bush Try To Forge His Way Out Of Iraq Mess?

A new book examining President Bush's wartime conduct is hitting the stands today with some noteworthy allegations. The charge getting the most attention thus far in Ron Suskind's The Way of the World is that the Bush White House specifically ordered the forgery of an Iraqi intelligence document which connected Saddam Hussein's government to Al Qaeda and the 9/11 attacks.

The document in question was allegedly penned by the director of Iraqi intelligence, and described a visit to Iraq by 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta in July 2001. It claimed that Iraqi officials "arranged a work program for him for three days with a team dedicated to working with him" and that Atta "displayed extraordinary effort and showed a firm commitment to lead the team which will be responsible for attacking the targets that we have agreed to destroy." Conveniently, the document also suggested a possible shipment of uranium to Iraq from Niger.