Baghdad Bob Is Back

And now some fresh pickings from the wartime grapevine:

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Mo in the Know?
If Operation Iraqi Freedom produced an international media celebrity, it was Iraq's former Foreign Minister and, until April 9, Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf (search) dubbed Baghdad Bob and Comical Ali for his Joe Isuzu-like battle damage assessments. Remember this doozie from just before the fall of Baghdad?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED SAEED AL-SAHAF, FRM. IRAQI INFORMATION MINISTER (through translator): There is no any threat -- any existence to the American troops or British troops in Baghdad at all.

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How about this description of the scene after coalition forces seized Saddam International Airport?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AL-SAHAF: We crushed the forces at Saddam International Airport (search) and we cleaned the whole place of the airport.

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Well, it turns out he lied about a lot of stuff, including his hair color, which he apparently got from a bottle. Nevertheless, he says in a recent television interview, quoted by the Los Angeles Times, "The information was correct, but the interpretations were not." As for those reports we told you about last month saying al-Sahhaf was trying to surrender to U.S. forces, but they wouldn't take him because he's not one of their 55 Most Wanted Iraqis, al-Sahhaf himself says it's all true. Pentagon officials disagree. A spokesman says U.S. troops haven't spoken to al-Sahhaf, but "feel free to believe him, he has such a good track record."

Nobel Nomination
Egypt's Cairo University has announced plans to nominate for the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize the French President Jacques Chirac (search), whose chief contribution to peace was to oppose the liberation of the Iraqi people and support the continued reign of Saddam Hussein who, by consensus estimates, murdered nearly a million of his countrymen. The university says the nomination expresses the Egyptian government's "appreciation of Chirac's constructive stances in support of international cooperation."

Passing It On to the People?
While he reportedly made $9 million from public speeches last year, former President Clinton and his wife, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton (search), still haven't paid up as much as $6.5 million dollars in legal fees from the Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky scandals. So what are they waiting for? The Lawyer Group says the Clintons are waiting for taxpayers to pick up at least half of the remaining bill. So far, however, the courts haven't passed the costs on to the people Mr. Clinton said he championed, those who "work hard and play by the rules."