2003: Secretary of State Colin Powell speaks at UN on Iraq possessing Biological Weapons.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell gives a speech to the United Nations that is both highly consequential and full of assertions that would be revealed to be weak or not credible on February 5, 2003. Using talking points that many within his own government had identified as either misleading or not credible, Powell outlined the United States' case that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, making the argument for the invasion that would happen the following month. Powell later called the speech a "blot" on his record.

Powell said he was delivering "facts and conclusions based on solid intelligence" as he told the UN that Iraq possessed biological weapons. He had reportedly received the text of the speech four days before it was to be given, during which time the State Department's intelligence bureau had raised red flags.