What Bush Knew: Answers Needed Re 911 (Guardian) Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit source - mango The Guardian - May 18, 2002 http://www.guardian.co.uk Editorial: What Bush knew Answers are needed about September 11 There is an element of what Americans call Monday morning quarterbacking, or speaking with the benefit of hindsight, in claims in Washington that the White House ignored credible pre-September 11 warnings of possible terrorist attacks. There is also, as President George Bush says, a "sniff of politics" about the righteous concern expressed by congressional Democrats. Nobody is really suggesting that Mr Bush or his national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, failed to act on unambiguous evidence of al-Qaida's designs against domestic US targets. But the White House's confirmation that Mr Bush was warned by the CIA, in August last year, that Osama bin Laden's gang was planning to hijack American planes does raise uncomfortable questions. Ms Rice says that by July last year, "there was a clear concern that something was up, something was coming - but it was principally focused overseas". This statement appears to take insufficient account of a prior alert and FBI and Federal Aviation Administration reports of potential domestic threats. Then, in late July, the FAA warned pointedly of "a significant threat to civil aviation". White House claims that nobody could foresee the use of hijacked planes as weapons are not entirely accurate. As far back as 1995, al-Qaida was plotting to crash several hijacked planes into CIA headquarters in Virginia, according to an al-Qaida terrorist held in Manila. It is not disputed, meanwhile, that in August an al-Qaida suspect was arrested at a flying school in Minnesota; that an FBI agent in Arizona warned his Washington superiors that he suspected several terrorists were undergoing pilot training in the US; that on September 9, Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld blocked new counter-terrorism spending in favour of his pet project, national missile defence; and that there was a systemic intelligence-sharing failure among federal agencies. Mr Bush, down on his Texas ranch in August, took no action because a public hijack warning "risked shutting down" civil aviation, Ms Rice says. But is it possible he (and she) were less vigilant or attentive than they might have been? And why did the White House stay silent for eight months? All this strengthens the case for an independent, blue-ribbon investigatory commission, as urged by Senator John McCain. Given the national and global magnitude of the September 11 events, it is indeed quite extraordinary that one has not already been created. Guardian Unlimited (c) Guardian Newspapers Limited 2002 ----- FAIR USE NOTICE: This post contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytnyc-05.19.02-06:45:30-3250