“Liberal democracy would be difficult to achieve,” according to a passage the intelligence official read to the Times. “Electoral democracy, were it to emerge, could well be subject to exploitation by anti-American elements.”
The official was familiar with a classified State Department document which “has been distributed to a small group of top government officials but not publicly disclosed,” the Times said.
The report, titled “Iraq, the Middle East and Change: No Dominoes,” was dated Feb. 26, the day that President Bush gave a speech advocating the domino theory of democracy in Iraq.
Speaking at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, Bush said replacing Saddam Hussein and rebuilding Iraq after the war would inspire democracy in the Middle East.
“The nation of Iraq … is fully capable of moving toward democracy and living in freedom,” said Bush. “A new regime in Iraq would serve as a dramatic and inspiring example of freedom for other nations in the region.”
Bush said, “Success in Iraq could also begin a new stage for Middle Eastern peace and set in motion progress towards a truly democratic Palestinian state.”
Other top administration officials, especially those pushing hardest for war, have claimed the democracy domino theory to bolster their case for a pre-emptive strike against and occupation of Iraq.
“Liberal democracy would be difficult to achieve,” according to a passage the intelligence official read to the Times. “Electoral democracy, were it to emerge, could well be subject to exploitation by anti-American elements.”
The Times reported that the official cited the report saying that “political changes conducive to broader and enduring stability throughout the region will be difficult to achieve for a very long time.”
State Department officials would not comment on the report produced by the Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
An EthicsDaily.com editorial two weeks ago argued that the case for an Iraqi democracy failed to pass the just war principle of reasonable hope of success.
“If the purpose of war is to produce democracy in Iraq and create peace between Palestinians and Israelis, then the war is an unjust one,” the editorial said. “While we might want democracy in Iraq, the US does not have enough of a reasonable chance to achieve this goal to justify war. The argument for democracy simply voids the toughness of morality in favor of magic dust.”
