Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
« Back to the grid | Next story »

Saddam Paid for Lawmakers' Trip to Iraq

Posted Mar 26, 08 8:45 PM CDT in US 

(Newser) – Saddam Hussein secretly paid for a trip made by three congressmen to Iraq in 2002  just ahead of the US invasion, the AP reports. The congressmen, all of whom opposed the war, did not know Saddam financed the trip because he funneled the money through a nonprofit group in Michigan. Federal prosecutors in Detroit today charged a member of that group with acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government.

"Obviously we didn't know it at the time," said Rep. Jim McDermott, who went on the trip with fellow Democrats David Bonior and Mike Thompson. "The trip was to see the plight of the Iraqi children." During the trip, they questioned the need for war, drawing criticism from Republicans. The indictment claims Muthanna Al-Hanooti conspired with Iraqi intelligence agents and received 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil for his work, notes the Detroit Free Press.

Sources Associated Press, Detroit Free Press

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Maliki's Power Grabs Stir Fears of 'Shiite Saddam'

    Nov 24, 08 10:18 AM CST
    Maliki's Power Grabs Stir Fears of 'Shiite Saddam' Ratification this week of a deal that would put an expiration date on the US deployment in Iraq stands to boost the prestige of PM Nouri al-Maliki, who in recent months has consolidated his power in moves that echo previous authoritarian regimes. As one Western observer tells the Los Angeles Times, Maliki is poised to become “a benevolent Shiite Saddam.” More »

  • Marines Try to Wean Iraq From US Pocketbook

    Oct 9, 08 1:11 PM CDT
    Marines Try to Wean Iraq From US Pocketbook As Iraq becomes safer, the Marines have focused on the next challenge: weaning the country’s security forces off US financial and logistical support, USA Today reports. To spur the independence of the nascent Iraqi police, the Marines now refuse to refuel their vehicles, and it's gotten the Iraqis' attention. "Things get real hard and they go, 'OK, we've got to fix this ourselves,'" says a Marine major general.
    More »

  • CBS Reporter Under Scrutiny for Iraq Booty

    Oct 3, 08 11:55 AM CDT
    CBS Reporter Under Scrutiny for Iraq Booty CBS chief correspondent and tabloid catnip Lara Logan has two portraits of Saddam Hussein in her office, and US Customs wants to know why. The art was recovered from the wreckage of a Baghdad palace, and it's illegal to take such items out of Iraq. Customs prosecuted a Fox News employee for similar actions, reports the New York Post.
    More »

  • Bush, Advisers Misled US on Iraq: Senate Report

    Jun 5, 08 2:19 PM CDT
    Bush, Advisers Misled US on Iraq: Senate Report The Bush administration distorted facts in justifying the invasion of Iraq and overstated Saddam Hussein’s links to al-Qaeda, a long-delayed report from the Senate intelligence committee concludes. Bush and his advisers also ignored doubts about Iraq’s possession of weapons of mass destruction in constructing their case for military action, Reuters reports. More »

  • Saddam's Last Days Revealed

    Mar 27, 08 2:10 PM CDT
    Saddam's Last Days Revealed The dictator who ruled with a murderous fist spent his time writing in his journal and tending to a small garden his captors allowed him in the prison courtyard. And on his execution day, the man known as "Vic" told guards to tell his daughter he was going to meet God with a clear conscience, a soldier for Iraq. CNN toured Saddam Hussein's detention cell, and reports these details of his last days. More »

Saddam Hussein's intelligence agency secretly funded a trip to Iraq for three congressmen before the US invasion, prosecutors allege.   (Getty Images)
Saddam Hussein's intelligence agency secretly funded a trip to Iraq for three congressmen before the US invasion, prosecutors allege.   ((c) pingnews.com)
Rep. Jim McDermott, right, D-Wash., and Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich., left, in a 2002 file photo.   (AP Photo/Ken Lambert, FILE)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (
1
 of 4)

Tags

Iraq • Iraq war • Saddam Hussein • congressional Democrats • Jim McDermott • David Bonior


Loading...

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other US Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »