Click the play button to see what Jack and our viewers had to say.
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
The Bush White House sold the Iraq war to the American people with a "political propaganda campaign" that was led by the president, and focused on "manipulating sources of public opinion" and "downplaying the major reason for going to war."
These are some of the withering charges in an explosive new book by former White House press secretary Scott McClellan. McClellan saw it all from the inside as a member of the president's inner circle.
McClellan stops just short of saying that the president lied about Iraq, but he says the administration played fast and loose with the truth in a way that almost guaranteed that the use of force would be the result. McClellan concludes: "What I do know is that war should only be waged when necessary, and the Iraq war was not necessary."
The White House is dismissing McClellan's claims as the work of a "disgruntled" former employee. But his book may have implications for John McCain. McCain has practically staked his campaign on his national security credentials and the war in Iraq – suggesting the U-S could be in Iraq for 100 years. He has also criticized Democrat Barack Obama for having "no experience or judgment or knowledge on Iraq."
McCain and Hillary Clinton voted for the war. Barack Obama did not. McClellan's book would suggest Obama got it right.
While McCain goes around saying he will never surrender in Iraq, without saying whom he would surrender to, his sale of the Iraq war to the American people as a campaign issue just got a whole lot trickier. A White House insider says the war wasn't necessary.
Here’s my question to you: How will Scott McClellan's book affect the presidential election?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Judy from Exeter, California writes:
McCain doesn't have an ice cube’s chance in hell now. McClellan has done the right thing, but for many, it's too little too late. Sleep well, Mr. Bush/Cheney. How can they live with themselves?
Shawn from Rosharon, Texas writes:
The question shouldn't be whether McClellan’s book will affect the election. Rather, the question should be whether or not the American people will listen.
Terri from Virginia writes:
When he left his post at the White House, McClellan received accolades and we heard how he would be missed. Now that he has the audacity to challenge the "facts" leading up to the war, he is a disgruntled employee. I think it has the potential to hurt McCain's campaign if the Rove machine doesn't figure out a way to spin this.
Margarite from Florida writes:
It’s just another political hack trying to make money by selling his friends and employer out.
Steve from Laguna Niguel, California writes:
The truth shall set you free! The American people are finally getting some truth to how pathetic the Bush administration really is. The book will only enforce the notion that we need change.
Andrew writes:
Sadly, the book will have little impact on the election. Fewer and fewer voters read. Of those who do, those already planning to vote Republican will dismiss the book as a hatchet job by a writer looking to cash in on his service with Bush - and those planning to vote Democrat already knew that Bush lied to bend public opinion. The book's message is: "Same story, different day."
Linda from Woodbury, New Jersey writes:
The combination of the HBO special "Recount" and the McClellan book was the one-two punch that made me feel that neither “We The People” nor the electoral college is running the show, and that the media has not given us the guidance we needed to get us through. It may affect the election. I might not vote at all. Is there any point? All we get is spin. We don't have a clue.