Cheney: OK, OK, Saddam Wasn't Behind 9/11

Former Vice President Dick Cheney has finally acknowledged, despite previous claims to the contrary, that Saddam Hussein did not collaborate with al-Qaeda to launch the 9/11 attacks. CIA information on such a collaboration "turned out not to be true," he conceded in remarks before the National Press Club, reports Bloomberg. But Cheney stood by his conviction that the invasion of Iraq was the correct decision, citing Hussein's relationship with al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations.

"There was a relationship between al-Qaeda and Iraq that stretched back 10 years. That’s not something I made up," said Cheney. Several months after 9/11, Cheney claimed direct involvement by Hussein in the attacks, saying a meeting between the attackers and Iraqi intelligence was "pretty well" confirmed. His latest comments are part of an ongoing publicity offensive against the Obama administration as Cheney seeks to defend former President Bush's policies. (More Dick Cheney stories.)