Hyping Iran Nukes, Again

Still, he remained a "go-to" expert on other Iraqi purported WMD, such as chemical and biological weapons. In a typical quote on Oct. 5, 2002, Albright told CNN: "In terms of the chemical and biological weapons, Iraq has those now."

Taken In

After Bush launched the Iraq invasion in March 2003 and Iraq's secret WMD caches didn't materialize, Albright admitted that he had been conned, explaining to the Los Angeles Times:

"If there are no weapons of mass destruction, I'll be mad as hell.

"I certainly accepted the administration claims on chemical and biological weapons. I figured they were telling the truth. If there is no [unconventional weapons program], I will feel taken, because they asserted these things with such assurance." [See FAIR's "The Great WMD Hunt,"]

Given the horrendous costs in blood and treasure resulting from the Iraq fiasco, an objective journalist might feel compelled to mention Albright's track record of bias and errors. But the Post's Warrick doesn't. If you read mid-way into Warrick's article on Thursday, you'll find the esteemed Albright and his ISIS at the core of the story, receiving credit for obtaining copies of the magnet purchase order.

"With two magnets needed per machine," Warrick writes, "the order technically could supply Iran with enough material for 50,000 new gas centrifuges, although some of the magnets would probably have been reserved for repairs and spare parts, said David Albright, ISIS president and a former IAEA inspector. 'It implies that they want to build a lot more centrifuges,' he said."

Warrick does include the boiler plate that Iran "insists" that it is not building a nuclear bomb -- with almost the wink-wink of who would believe that -- but the reporter doesn't mention that U.S. intelligence agencies agree that Iran has not resumed work on a nuclear weapon or that Israel maintains a sophisticated and undeclared nuclear arsenal of its own.

Though Warrick cites the concerns of Prime Minister Netanyahu about Iran's nuclear program, the reporter doesn't observe that Israel is arguably the world's most notorious rogue nuclear state. It has built up its undeclared nuclear arsenal after refusing to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) and keeping IAEA inspectors away from its nuclear facilities.

By contrast, Iran signed the NPT, has renounced nuclear weapons, and has allowed IAEA inspectors to monitor its nuclear energy program. Granted, Iran's cooperation has been less than stellar but its record is far superior to Israel's.

Yet, Albright and his ISIS -- like Warrick and the Post -- have largely turned a blind eye to Israel's nukes and focused instead on Iran's theoretical bomb-making.