The War Card

The mission of The Center of Public Integrity:Investigative Journalism in the Public Interest website is "to produce original investigative journalism about significant public issues to make institutional power more transparent and accountable. To pursue its mission, the Center:

• Generates high-quality, accessible investigative reports, databases and contextual analysis on issues of public importance.
• Disseminates work to journalists, policymakers, scholars and citizens using a combination of digital, electronic and print media.
• Educates, engages and empowers citizens with tools and skills they need to hold governments and other institutions accountable.
• Organizes and supports investigative journalists around the world who apply the Center's goals and standards to cross-border projects.
• Remains independent by building a strong and sustainable financial base of support, including a community of committed individuals and foundations.

The Center's War Card project has compiled a searchable record of the many false statements that were made by top U.S. officials in the two years following 09/11 and leading up to the Iraq invasion. The center purports to show that the Bush administration "waged a carefully orchestrated campaign of misinformation about the thread posed by Saddam Hussein's Iraq." However that may be, the database and timeline of Iraq-related pronouncements by U.S. officials are unique resources for anyone studying the rhetoric and developments leading up to the invasion. See also earlier post about the Center's Buying of the President 2008 project.