I agree it looks like a blunder, but I'm not certain it really is one. The problem is, both governments are engaging in bureaucratic run around 101. Pass out a lot of pieces of paper with writing on them (doesn't really matter what it actually says, who wrote it, or when), and claim it to be "evidence" or "documentation" or "accountability" or whatever the word is that best fits the blank for the specific instance. Bureacrats operate according to this sort of a belief system--the one that says if it is a piece of paper that we issued, it carries the same moral weight as the Bible.

We are conditioned to believe that if something is written down, or if a government official hands out the papers, and calls those pieces of paper "evidence" then it must be true, even when it hasn't been examined and verified independently (the job of a free press in a free country, but someone forgot to tell Disney that). So, the government official hands out the papers, then the media writes down exactly what the official tells them to write down, about these papers. Then they print that as "the story" or "the facts", often without even examining the pieces of paper--you know, like actually reading them.

I'm guessing that with the vast majority of the world's citizens being against this war, this pressure is resulting in something positive--at least some in the media fear losing all credibility (which could actually threaten their jobs) with the public, are actually taking some (not a lot though) time to check on the veracity of the stories, to see if the information is credible, and where it is coming from. That appears to be what happened this time. Because they know that if they don't check on it, there are plenty of people opposed to the war, who have excellent research credentials, and who will definitely be going over the documents with a fine tooth comb.

Bottom line--neither government has presented any credible evidence against Saddam Hussein on either WMD or links to The Big Terrorist Network We Are Now Ignoring--that one behind the curtain. Ignore that terrorist network behind the curtain. The Great, Benificent Oz has it all under control. You dare to doubt the Great and Powerful Oz? You do?