Editorial: Start weapons probe

Friday, Jan. 30, 2004 | 9:06 a.m.

Last week the former chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq said that stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction probably didn't exist in Iraq before the war started. David Kay's acknowledgement undercut one of the Bush administration's central reasons for launching a pre-emptive war: that Saddam Hussein's regime had to be toppled because of the deadly weapons he possessed.

When it comes to assigning blame, Kay has said that it was the fault of the intelligence community -- himself included -- for not providing President Bush with better information. Kay's refreshing candor, something in short supply in Washington, is even rarer at the White House. Bush administration officials have yet to acknowledge that there was an intelligence gap, noting that the search for weapons of mass destruction is still ongoing in Iraq.

The big question is how did this failure happen? Despite critics who suggest otherwise, Kay says he doesn't believe political pressure was brought to bear on intelligence analysts to change their assessments to support the rationale for an invasion. Kay says inadequate "human intelligence" and an over-reliance on high-tech means, such as using spy satellites instead of observers or spies on the ground, led to the shortcoming.

Kay recommended in his testimony before Congress on Wednesday that an independent investigation be created to determine what went wrong and how to make changes so such a grave miscalculation doesn't happen again. The White House says it is too soon for an outside probe. Too soon, we assume, means before the 2004 election. While we supported the Iraq war, we also believe an investigation is warranted. Our tax dollars are going to fight this war, one where more than 500 Americans already have lost their lives. An independent commission should immediately investigate this intelligence failure -- for the benefit of future life-and-death decisions.