We have now had two failed attacks in a row, this one and the Underwear Bomber on NW253 that failed. The scary part is that they failed not because of what we did, but because the attackers were, to a degree, incompetent.
Depending upon the stupidity of your enemy is not an acceptable defense.
We can cheer the great police work.
But the intelligence work failed. Again. Just as it did with the NW253 attack and just as it did on 9/11. Remember. The CIA knew an attack was coming, but it didn't know where, when or how. Bush's NSA advised all the agencies on 7/5.
"At the special meeting on July 5 were the FBI, Secret Service, FAA, Customs, Coast Guard, and Immigration. We told them that we thought a spectacular al Qaeda terrorist attack was coming in the near future." That had been had been George Tenet's language. "We asked that they take special measures to increase security and surveillance. Thus, the White House did ensure that domestic law enforcement including the FAA knew that the CSG believed that a major al Qaeda attack was coming, and it could be in the U.S., and did ask that special measures be taken."
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Yet almost 9 years later very little has changed on the prevention side. All we know is that an attack is coming.
Maybe its time to quit congratulating ourselves and start figuring out how to prevent them.
The scary part is that with the election of Obama we have returned to the failed "this is a criminal justice matter."
No. It is not. This is a national defense matter and Obama's lack of effort in this will, sooner or later, enable a terrorist who is not incompetent and he kill thousands of Americans.
Parts of this was posted in TalkLeft.
On Twitter I am Lesabre1
At issue is a July 5, 2001, meeting between Ashcroft and acting FBI Director Tom Pickard. That month, the threat of an al-Qaida attack was so high, the White House summoned the FBI and domestic agencies, and warned them to be on alert.
ReplyDeleteYet, Pickard testified to the 9/11 commission that when he tried to brief Ashcroft just a week later, on July 12, about the terror threat inside the United States, he got the brush-off.
"Mr. Ashcroft told you that he did not want to hear about this anymore," Democratic commission member Richard Ben-Veniste asked on April 13. "Is that correct?"
"That is correct," Pickard replied.
Testifying under oath the same day, Ashcroft categorically denied the allegation, saying, "I did never speak to him saying that I didn't want to hear about terrorism."
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NBC News has learned that commission investigators also tracked down another FBI witness at the meeting that day, Ruben Garcia, head of the Criminal Division at that time. Several sources familiar with the investigation say Garcia confirmed to the commission that Ashcroft did indeed dismiss Pickard's warnings about al-Qaida.
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And your point is??????
ReplyDeleteAs your source noted, the FBI had been warned. So had the other agencies...From Coni Rice's interview.
"At the special meeting on July 5 were the FBI, Secret Service, FAA, Customs, Coast Guard, and Immigration. We told them that we thought a spectacular al Qaeda terrorist attack was coming in the near future." That had been had been George Tenet's language. "We asked that they take special measures to increase security and surveillance. Thus, the White House did ensure that domestic law enforcement including the FAA knew that the CSG believed that a major al Qaeda attack was coming, and it could be in the U.S., and did ask that special measures be taken."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,115170,00.html
Are you trying to sell us on the FBI didn't do anything because of what Ashcroft did or did not say?
Really Dark Avenger I expect better of you than that.