Six Months Ago ...

President dismisses critics
Administration wants support for strategy

By Michael Abramowitz and Jonathan Weisman
The Washington Post
January 27. 2007 8:35AM

Declaring "I'm the decision maker," President Bush dismissed congressional efforts to formally condemn his Iraq plan yesterday, while Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned that a proposed Senate resolution criticizing the deployment of additional troops would embolden the enemy.

"Any indication of flagging will in the United States gives encouragement to those folks," Gates told reporters at the Pentagon. "I'm sure that that's not the intent behind the resolutions, but I think it may be the effect."

Yet, on July 20, 2007, six months later, Defense Secretary Gates said the exact opposite and essentially lied about his statement in January:

"I have long been a staunch advocate of Congressional oversight, first at the CIA and now at the Defense Department. I have said on several occasions in recent months that I believe that congressional debate on Iraq has been constructive and appropriate."

The lies never quit.