Neocon history

There is a good article by Ehsan Ahrari in the Asia Times (why does the Asia Times have such a monopoly on good articles?; you'd never read something this good if you read American journalism for a million years), relying on James Mann's "The Rise and Fall of the Vulcans", on the history of the neocons:

"The real plan to invade Iraq was originally hatched in 1991, when then-president, George H W Bush, was at the helm. Libby was only one of its planners. The 'big enchiladas' were Cheney, who then served as secretary of defense, and Paul Wolfowitz, who served as under secretary of defense. Current Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld became an active participant as someone who was then outside the government. Their plan to oust Saddam Hussein's forces from Kuwait was reportedly far riskier than the one promoted by then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Colin Powell. Bush Senior apparently vetoed the Cheney et al's plan and gave a nod to Powell's.

The neo-conservative architects of the invasion of Iraq were 'deeply disappointed' when Bush Senior decided against the hot pursuit of the retreating Iraqi forces from Kuwait."

and:

"As Mann points out, even though the initial military target of the US in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks was Afghanistan, Wolfowitz (then deputy defense secretary) and Libby 'laid out the case for the invasion of Iraq just one week after the Twin Towers fell'.

Libby was also reportedly responsible for the first draft of Powell's now infamous presentation to the United Nations a month before the US invasion of Iraq."

There's a lot more, on how the neocons got away with it, and how their revenge-based ideology still infects American foreign policy (the loss of Libby has done nothing to change the neocon policy - Libby has been replaced by crazies who are even more hard-line - and the failure of the American left to realize how screwed it was by Fitzgerald - two years later, and he's still looking for clues, just like O. J. Simpson is still looking for whoever killed his wife - means that the neocons can continue to carry on their plans without any real opposition). The neocons intended to destroy Iraq years before September 11, years before anyone had ever spoken of al-Qaeda, and years before anyone had any concern whatsoever about the weapons of mass destruction supplied to Saddam largely by Americans like Rumsfeld (and subsequently destroyed). All their lies were simply ad hoc excuses to back up a ten-year old plan which had been thwarted by Presidents too smart to carry it out. Cheney, Wolfowitz, Rumsfeld and Libby just bided their time during the Clinton interregnum, waiting for a
Bush stupid enough to go along with their insane ideas. The upshot is the biggest mistake in the history of American foreign policy, soon apparently to be repeated over and over again in places like Syria.