But what’s with the semantics? The inspectors conducted inspections from November 2002 until March 18, 2003. They filed reports on these inspections, so it is simply antifactual to assert Saddam “didn’t allow inspections.”

In any case, even if Saddam had had 50 Al-Samouds, he was hardly a threat that warranted taking a great nation to war. After all, North Korea developed nukes on Bush’s watch, but he didn’t invade and occupy the northern peninsula.

By late 2002, Iraq was completely strapped down by the naval and air forces of US and Britain. If Saddam had launched even a single missile at Israel, it would have been over for him, and he knew it. The notion that we had to invade because he was hiding Al-Samouds was a red herring. Cheney and Bush were going in no matter what.

It wasn’t all about the oil — Bush had domestic political objectives too — but any sane person would have to admit that if Iraq had been sitting on nothing but one-third of the world’s supply of olive oil, there is no way we would be occupying it today.

The next day, Iraq found another six Al-Samoud 2 missiles, and bulldozed them bringing to 16 the number destroyed.

The next day they destroy another 2 missiles, nickel-and-diming the destruction of banned weapons.

In that same AP story of Mar 17 that you quoted you left out the mention that ElBaradei and Blix had received an invitation from Baghdad “to visit Iraq with a view toward accelerating the implementation of our respective mandates.” In other words, Saddam -on the eve of war- was saying, OK, OK, perhaps we’ll let you visit more sites and in more detail and more quickly. But it was too late. The US was not going to be okey-doked for another few years.

On Mar 18, [cbsnews http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/03/17/iraq/main544280.shtml ] “Saddam made a last-minute bid to avert war, admitting that Iraq had once possessed weapons of mass destruction to defend itself from Iran and Israel – but insisting that it no longer has them. ” Missing from this plea was the statement: “OK, look at whatever you want, inspect even my palaces, nothing is off limits. Verify to your heart’s content that I have nothing.” That’s what a sane person would have done.

Associated Press, March 17, 2003 — three days before the invasion:

U.S advises weapons inspectors to leave Iraq

In the clearest sign yet that war with Iraq is imminent, the United States has advised U.N. weapons inspectors to begin pulling out of Baghdad, the U.N. nuclear agency chief said Monday.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the recommendation was given late Sunday night both to his Vienna-based agency hunting for atomic weaponry and to the New York-based teams looking for biological and chemical weapons.

“Late last night … I was advised by the U.S. government to pull out our inspectors from Baghdad,” ElBaradei told the IAEA’s board of governors. He said U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the Security Council were informed and that the council would take up the issue later Monday.

U.N. officials have said the inspectors and support staff still in Iraq could be evacuated in as little as 48 hours.

AP, March 18, one day before the invasion:

Weapons Inspectors Leave Iraq

U.N. weapons inspectors climbed aboard a plane and pulled out of Iraq on Tuesday after President Bush issued a final ultimatum for Saddam Hussein to step down or face war.

A plane carrying the inspectors took off from Saddam International Airport at 10:25 a.m. It landed an hour and a half later in Laranca, Cyprus where the inspectors have a base.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday ordered all U.N. inspectors and support staff, humanitarian workers and U.N. observers along the Iraq-Kuwait border to evacuate Iraq after U.S. threats to launch war.

U.N. spokesman Hiro Ueki said 56 inspectors as well as support staff were on board Tuesday. Reporters at the airport saw about 80 people boarding buses for the plane, and officials earlier estimated the total number of U.N. evacuees at about 150.

After failing to secure U.N. authorization to use force to disarm Iraq, President Bush gave Saddam 48 hours to step down or face war in a speech Monday night. (Emphasis added.)

The military invasion of Iraq began in Baghdad on March 20, 2003, at 5:34 a.m. — which was March 19 at 9:34 p.m. EST in the United States.

That out of the way, I linked to your article from Charles Krauthammer is an Idiot