McCain calls for hearings

Some say that the Bush administration oversold the danger so as to better rally the nation toward war. Even some supporters of the war are beginning to say that -- on Fox News Sunday, William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, allowed that while the war was still just and prudent, he was "very skeptical" that WMD would be found. He went on to say that "it is fair to say that if we don't find serious weapons of mass destruction capabilities, the case for urgency, which Bush and Blair certainly articulated, is going to be undercut to some degree." Kristol was one of your big supporters during your presidential race, doesn't that give you at least a moment for pause?

I just think -- as I said -- I think we will find weapons of mass destruction. Now, I think it's entirely appropriate now that regime change has been orchestrated -- and though the danger is certainly not over, the mission is "accomplished" -- it's appropriate to have a hearing.

Though White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Wednesday that hearings were an appropriate part of Congress' oversight role, it seemed at first that the administration didn't want the Senate to hold any hearings on this. Have you heard from the White House about your call for hearings?

No, and I don't know of any disagreement. John Warner has already scheduled the first hearing.

Beginning last fall, the media has told story after story of senior intelligence officials saying that the administration pressured their agencies to cook information to better sell the urgency of the war and the danger posed by Saddam's regime. What was your response when you read those stories?

Well, I thought it was another reason why we should have hearings on the entire issue of weapons of mass destruction. It's an issue that needs to be addressed. But I hesitate to jump to conclusions without complete information.

You've been a big supporter of this war. Didn't the stories concern you, make you wonder if perhaps you too had been misled by twisted information, as these officials told reporters?

It made me believe, again, that we need to have hearings and look at this issue. Look, it disturbed me when we heard of young people killed by friendly fire. We need to find out if any of that was at all unavoidable. It concerned me during those few days when we were bogged down. A lot of things concerned me throughout the conflict. It's why we have congressional oversight.

What would you say to someone who had lost a loved one fighting in Operation Iraqi Freedom and was upset that the WMD had not yet been found?

I would say that, I hope you'll have patience, No. 1. No. 2, we appreciate your loved one's sacrifice, and that sacrifice was not in vain because the people of Iraq have been freed from one of most brutal dictators on earth and will now have a chance for freedom they never would have had while he was in power.

The Associated Press counted more than 3,400 Iraqi civilians killed in the war. Was it worth it?

When you look at the size of the conflict, the losses -- as tragic as they were --the losses both civil and military were remarkably low.

According to polls, the American people don't seem to care much about this issue. Why don't they seem to, and why does the media seem so interested in it?

I'm not sure the American people don't care. I think they may be reserving judgment until they have complete information. It's the media's job, of course, to raise these issues and they're playing their usual vital watchdog role.

Why would Saddam destroy his WMD before the war, as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld speculated he might have done?

I do not know. But I don't know why he refused to cooperate with the inspectors. I never knew why he invaded Kuwait! There's a whole lot of things Saddam Hussein did that I never understood.

I know you think the WMD will be found, but if they aren't, will that change anything?

I'm assuming something will be found. It's hard for me to speculate about nothing being found.

But if they aren't, will there be any long-term effects either domestically or internationally?

I don't know. I really don't know the answer to that. I know that most Americans feel it was justified with or without the discovery of weapons of mass destruction. Whether or not that would change over time, I just don't know.

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