Exclusive: The latest neocon gambit is to build support for "regime change" in Syria by downplaying the evils of Al Qaeda, rebranding it as some sort of "moderate" terrorist force whose Syrian affiliate is acceptable to Israel and supported by Saudi Arabia. But this audacious argument ignores reality, writes Daniel Lazare.

By Daniel Lazare

Just nine days after the fall of the World Trade Center, George W. Bush announced that he was imposing a radical new policy on virtually the entire globe: "Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime."

As dramatic as the statement was, just about every phrase was open to question in one form or another.  But rather than launching into a long and vigorous debate about the meaning of terrorism or America's right to impose diktat on the world at large, congressmen turned their minds off and gave Bush a standing ovation.