| | Former Iraqi PM: Bush policies an 'utter failure'
 Ayad Allawi, the American-appointed, one-time prime minister of Iraq, said Saturday the Bush administration's policies in the country have been an "utter failure."
In a wide-ranging interview with Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, Allawi offered harsh criticisms of George W. Bush's handling of the nation's sectarian violence, and of the sitting Iraqi administration.
"Yes, Bush's policies failed utterly," said Allawi. "Utter failure. Failure of U.S. domestic and foreign policy, including fighting terrorism and economic policy."
"His insistence on names like 'democracy' and 'open elections,' without giving attention to political stability, was a big mistake," he added. "It cast shadows on Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Egypt, and I believe this will be remembered in history as President Bush's policy.
"Ending Saddam's regime was essential, but replacing the Saddam regime with extreme chaos was not right," he said. "I did not imagine the political process would eat itself from inside or that it would abandon the rule of law and establish political sectarianism."
Allawi is said to be the the source of substancial press coverage of an alleged link between the 9/11 attacks and Saddam's government. A forged letter containing the allegation, which a CIA official admitted was ordered by a note written on White House stationary, was allegedly produced at the request of Vice President Cheney.
In August 2007 it was revealed that lobbying firm Barbour, Griffith and Rogers -- which has close ties to the Bush administration and whose president is a former US envoy to Iraq -- was supporting former interim prime minister Ayad Alllawi. The firm sent hundreds of e-mails in Allawi's name from an e-mail address it purchased, DrAyadAllawi@Allawi-for-Iraq.com, and it purchased the Web domain AllawiForIraq.com.
"A former member of Saddam's Baath Party who fled into exile and agitated against the dictator, Allawi now heads a secular political movement which did poorly in elections in 2005," reports Reuters. "His bloc was part of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government but walked out last year."
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