“Today’s indictments begin to peal away the tissue of lies on which the Iraq war was justified – but it is only the beginning.

“White House Aide Scooter Libby has been accused of trying to cover up the cover up – one part of a deliberate effort to deceive the public about the threat of nuclear weapons that led us to war. This new information raises serious questions about the actions of Bush Administration officials at the highest levels of the government.

“We now know that the infamous 16 words in President Bush’s 2003 State of the Union Address alleging that Saddam Hussein sought yellowcake uranium from Africa, were a lie.

“It turns out that this lie was one of a series of fabrications and exaggerations made by the Bush Administration about the nuclear threat posed by Iraq that were used to justify the war.

“This investigation leads straight back to an extremely serious matter of national security – the unanswered questions about the White House push to convince the public of Iraq’s nuclear threat, the case that sent hundreds of thousands of American troops overseas into harm’s way.

“We must see this judicial process through to make sure that the men and women working for the government who put their lives on the line to protect our country everyday can feel safe that they will receive the protection that they deserve.”