The Bush administration yesterday dismissed Iraq’s efforts to destroy six missiles as “the mother of all distractions.” White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said, “Here’s the Catch-22 that Saddam Hussein has put himself in: he denied he had these weapons, and then he destroys things he says he never had. If he lies about never having them, how can you trust him when he says he has destroyed them? ”

But the Washington Post points out that it was Fleischer himself who may have been lying to reporters. The paper reports that Iraq never denied having the missiles. Their existence was outlined in Iraq’s weapons declaration submitted to the Security Council in December. They were destroyed over the weekend in accordance with the UN.

We go now to Democracy Now! correspondent Jeremy Scahill in Baghdad.

• Jeremy Scahill, Democracy Now! correspondent.

And just a few moments ago, Reverend Dr. Herbert Daughtry, national Pastor of the House of the Lord Pentecostal Church spoke to Democracy Now! From Baghdad about his mission in Iraq.

• Reverend Dr. Herbert Daughtry, national Pastor of the House of the Lord Pentecostal Church.

Related link:

• Iraq Journal