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NYPost
There's been a lot of finger pointing the last few days over the attempted bombing of flight 253, most of it coming from Republicans who have used words like "negligence" and Dick Cheney's comment that Obama didn't seem to take terrorism seriously.
But it was not taking terrorism seriously by George W.Bush, Dick Cheney and Condoleeza Rice that allowed the worst attack on American soil by a foreign enemy in history to take place on the morning of Sept 11,2001.
It was nothing less than gross, even criminal negligence and a violation of Bush's oath of office to protect the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic, that should have resulted in George Bush's impeachment over the 911. And in the process would have saved the country all the catastrophies brought on by Bush since that day.
Bush, Rice and Cheney were never held accountable solely because of the most spineless collection of journalists in American history who, when faced with the overwhelming evidence of Bush's gross negligence, and the painful truth that 911 not only could have and should have been prevented, but that it could have easily been prevented, ran from that truth afraid of Republican criticism and they have been running ever since.
The evidence that George W Bush, Condoleeza Rice and Dick Cheney were guilty of the worst case of gross negligence regarding the national security of the United States in the 911 attacks is irrefutable.
And this is just some of the evidence:
1. During the presidential transition period in January of 2001, Bush was told in a face to face meeting by then president Bill Clinton, that Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were the single biggest threats to US national security in the world.
2. During that same transition period in January 2001, in a meeting with outgoing national security advisor Sandy Berger, Bush, and Condoleeza Rice were told by Berger that Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were the biggest national security threats to the US in the world. And to make his point even finer, Berger told Bush that Al-Qaeda's threat was so serious, that he predicted the Bush administration would spend more time dealing with Al-Qaeda than any other issue throughout Bush's presidency.
3. During the national security briefings all presidents-elect receive at Blair House, prior to their inauguration, Bush was told by CIA Director George Tenant and FBI Director Robert Mueller that the biggest threat to US national security in the world was Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda.
4. The first thing Bush did with regards to terrorism after taking office on January 20,2001, was demote Richard Clarke, the White House anti-terrorism czar under 3 previous presidents from a cabinet level position to a sub cabinet position without direct access to the president. Bush made it clear that his administration didn't think the Al-Qaeda threat was as serious as he was being told.
4. The next thing Bush did was dissolve the Principals Meeting, a daily meeting during the Clinton Administration where the heads of all relevant agencies in fighting terrorism, which included the Attorney General, CIA Director, FBI Director, head of ATF, Immigration and others, chaired by Richard Clarke and meet and SHARE all information gathered by each department in the previous 24 hours on terrorism.
This practice overcame the issues of communication between agencies that was rampant during Bush's presidency since all information on terrorism was shared ona daily basis. Then, in Clarke's words, after each meeting, the head of each department would
"go back and shake the trees" for any new information" collected by their agencies and bring it with them to the next meeting to share with the other agencies.
Bush ended this practice.
Had Bush not ended this practice, the famous FBI Phoenix Memo written in July of 2001 where an FBI agent reported on the suspicious activity of two middle eastern men attending a Phoenix flying school, would have been reported and shared at the Principles Meeting.
The suspicious activity reported was that the two Middle Eastern men wanted to learn to fly jumbo jets but didn't want to learn how to take off and land which set off alarm bells at the Phoenix FBI office. The men were paying for the flying lessons in cash. One of those two men was Mohammad Atta. The other another 911 hijacker. Under the new policies of the Bush Administration that memo never got out of the Phoenix office.
5. A similar memo was sent regarding Moussaui, known as the Minneapolis Memo where sharp eyed FBI agents also sent a memo regarding suspicious activity at a Minneapolis flying school. Moussaui, one of the 911 conspirators also wanted to learn to fly jumbo jets but didn't want to learn how to take off or land. Had either of those memos been acted on 911 would have been prevented.
6. In August of 2001, intercepts of Al-Qaeda chatter by the CIA was the highest Richard Clarke had seen in 20 years. One translation made clear there was going to be an "imminent attack" against the U.S. and , in the words of the memo, the attack was going to be "spectacular".
Clarke and George Tenant testified that as a result of these intercepts they were "running around the White House like men with their hair on fire" trying to get Bush's attention. Bush was on vacation in Crawford and refused to have a meeting. They told Rice of their concerns. They were ignored.
7. Bush was given an August 6th PDB entitled " Bin Laden Determined to Strike Within the US" in which the intelligence agencies told Bush that Al-Qaeda was going to hit the US inside our borders, that there were 70 Al-Qaeda cells already in the US and they had evidence that Al-Qaeda was going to hijack civilian airliners ( pg. 2 of the Aug, 6,2001 PDB). They also reported that Al-Qaeda was conducting surveillance on Federal buildings in New York City.
Bush, Rice and Cheney did nothing. With any of it.
With all the information available to Bush at the time, had Bush simply issued an order to the FAA to put out an alert to all airports and airlines to be aware of any suspicious activity because of a threat of hijacking, 911 would have been stopped.
Recently a Republican mouthpiece was on CNN attacking the Obama Administration over the fact that the Nigerian bomber boarded an international flight with no luggage, bought a one way ticket and paid cash and complained of the stupidity that didn't see this as a red flag.
On the morning of Sept.11,2001, after being told for 8 months of the threat of Al-Qaeda, the spike in chatter, the intercepts that an attack was imminent, the information that they would attempt to hijack US airliners, that building in New York City were under surveillance by Al-Qaeda, and the warnings that Al-Qaeda was American biggest national security threat,all nine 911 hijackers that morning, Middle Eastern men, purchased transcontinental airline tickets that were all one way. None of them had luggage. All paid cash.
A simple alert to airlines and airports would have stopped those hijackers in their tracks. they werent that smart. Just smarter than Bush, Rice and Cheney.
When Condoleeza Rice said there was nothing they could have done to stop 911 she was lying and the press let her, Bush and Cheney get away with it.
An alert to major airlines and airports about a possible hijacking threat by Middle Eastern men would have stopped 911 even without the Phoenix and Minneapolis Memos which under Clinton would have been sent right to the top and shared in the Principles Meeting.
Bush, Rice and Cheney all violated their oaths, all were and are guilty of the worst negligence regarding national security in the country's history and all were given a free pass by a spineless news media afraid to hold them accountable and a Republican party wanting to cover it up.
As for the press, the information that came out was of bombshell proportions but they didn't follow up. This was a press that considered Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky more worthy of press scrutiny than what happened on 911.
And we are where we are today because of it.
Comments
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yeah buddy, thats exactly how things are arround here. All those whom where negligent should have been impeach, but like you so well say, they were all given a free pass. This media is whats getting this country down to its knees and the terror that roams within this nation. I lost all faith in democracy, it needs people so that it works, america its full of sheeps, and church people and that = catastrophe. Here, its where we are....
Odigo says workers were warned of attack
By <a href="mailto:yuvaldr@haaretz.co.il" class="tUbl2">Yuval Dror</a>
Odigo, the instant messaging service, says that two of its workers received messages two hours before the Twin Towers attack on September 11 predicting the attack would happen, and the company has been cooperating with Israeli and American law enforcement, including the FBI, in trying to find the original sender of the message predicting the attack.
Micha Macover, CEO of the company, said the two workers received the messages and immediately after the terror attack informed the company's management, which immediately contacted the Israeli security services, which brought in the FBI.
"I have no idea why the message was sent to these two workers, who don't know the sender. It may just have been someone who was joking and turned out they accidentally got it right. And I don't know if our information was useful in any of the arrests the FBI h
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