Good ole Carter

[kite]

TweetLONDON —

Former President Jimmy Carter caused a stir over the weekend when he claimed that Israel possesses a nuclear arsenal of 150 weapons.

While experts have long maintained Israel has a nuclear arsenal, the Jewish state has refused to confirm or deny it.

Most estimates, many based on evidence leaked in 1986 by Israeli nuclear technician Mordechai Vanunu, put the number of Israeli nuclear weapons at between 100 and 200. But other experts have said the number is as low as 60 or as high as 400.

It was unclear from a report of Carter's comments — made on Sunday and reported Monday in the Times of London — whether the former Democratic president was citing those estimates, offering his own independent assessment or drawing on U.S. intelligence he would have had access to as president.

U.S. officials have generally avoided the issue of Israel's nuclear status, although during a 2006 Senate confirmation hearing Secretary of Defense Robert Gates confirmed that Israel was a nuclear power.

The Times said Carter made the comment Sunday while at the Hay-on-Wye literary festival on the border between England and Wales. He was discussing Iran, and the difficulty it would have in building a secret nuclear arsenal, when he mentioned the Israeli weapons, the paper said.

Former Israeli military Intelligence chief retired Maj. Gen. Aharon Ze'evi Farkash warned that Carter's comments could be used by Iran to push its nuclear development.

"[Carter] is not the first and he won't be the last to talk about this," Farkash said in an interview Monday with Israel Radio. "It would seem that in [Carter's] latest visit to the region, he was so hurt [by the political establishment shunning him] that he saw fit to say things which I think weren't that responsible.

"He was a president a long time ago, and these kinds of things could do damage, but on the other hand, it could enhance the deterrent," Farkash said, adding that "some of our 'less good' friends, could use these claims against us."

The Associated Press and Jerusalem Post contributed to this report.

[Dzone]

TweetCarter is a close second to our current president as the worst president in history...the guy was a phuckin joke

[bohunt]

TweetThe old peanut farmer. The only thing he did was raise the price of peanut butter when he was president.

[bohunt]

TweetThe old peanut farmer. The only thing he did was raise the price of peanut butter when he was president.

[Deno]

Tweetphuck carter...

[Dzone]

Tweeta lot of carters current rhetoric is just plain anti-american...he shoots his mouth off all over the world...phucken as$hole

[T-Man007]

TweetWhat a big mouth dumb ass! Why the heck would he say something like that? Is the dip**** trying to start MORE trouble over there? As if there aren't enough problems over there this old fuk goes and gets a fire built under the ass of Iran. Way to go jackoff!

[T-Man007]

TweetThey should take away his sercret service agents as a punishment!!!!

[firstenrgy]

TweetNo nned to comment, just read above.

[kite]

Tweet

They should take away his sercret service agents as a punishment!!!!

yeppers

[FUZO]

Tweet

They should take away his sercret service agents as a punishment!!!!

YES THEY SHOULD

[Waterboy]

TweetThe ICE should reposes his Passport and not let him ou tof the country