Rush to Judgment
Jan 2nd, 2010 | 4 responses
Adding on to Dr. Steven Taylor’s fine post highlighting some of the more irrational responses to Mark Hosenball’s Newsweek article about the intelligence briefing Pres. Obama received three days before the Christmas Day attempted airline bombing, here is a much more thoughtful and sensible piece by the always-worth- reading Spencer Ackerman:
Going off what Hosenball has reported, this isn’t like George W. Bush’s August 6, 2001 PDB, which discussed a staggering 70 FBI investigations into al-Qaeda; articulated al-Qaeda’s desire to use planes as missiles; and placed a forthcoming homeland attack within the context of escalating al-Qaeda threats. A possible parallel, unproven at this point — indeed, there’s no evidence for it, aside from the speculation that follows — is whether the Christmas briefing occurred in the context of earlier briefings in which the intelligence community and key White House aides expressed “hair on fire” concerns about “the system blinking red,” since that was the situation in the pre-9/11 summer of 2001. But, again: unless inquiries uncover such a thing, there isn’t any evidence suggesting that. To the contrary: as Hosenball reports, a “stream of information which alluded to a possible holiday-period plot” emanating from Pakistan turned out to be most likely “a washout.”But here’s the issue: it’s not simply what’s in the intelligence brief. It’s in what the response was. And in this case, it looks initially like the inputs were simply insufficient to prompt an all-hands Homeland Security/State response that would have yanked Abdulmutallab’s visa or placed him on the no-fly. The way to do that is to significantly lower the standards for keeping people out of the U.S., and that has significant consequences for all manner of other interests. If this is really the direction we want to go in the name of perfect security — for an al-Qaeda already lowering its sights from planes-as-missiles to on-board detonations — then let’s debate that. But let’s not pretend there’s a cost-free solution.
opinions powered by SendLove.to
4 Responses to “Rush to Judgment”
So Kathy, when Bush doesn't prevent an attack based on vague intelligence on a possible attack of a previous unknown type, he is criminally stupid, but when Obama does the same, but with a definitive time frame for the attack (and had another briefing back in October about the EXACT tactic used on the airplane, as it had been just used in an assignation attempt), he is to be fully exonerated for not being able to really know what was coming.
And when he spends two days golfing and vacationing in Hawaii before respondiong, while his lieutenants tell us how great the system worked (when in fact it did not work at all), that is BETTER than GWB taking a few minutes to react to the news just given to him about 9/11?
Move along you lookie loos, there is no liberal bias to be seen here.
I will rush to judgment and say this is going to one of the most beat-up, boring stories of 2010.
If for once a politician would just speak non-politician talk, meaning shut up and put all your efforts into improving the system. It will never be perfect, and all the warnings in the world, and that is part of the problem, there are tons of warnings, briefings, suspects, emails, calls, bird dropping, and tea leaf readings.
Pretty soon certain people and journalists will want to know why O didn't have a Snickers candy bar wrapper left in the Rose Garden. These presidents are trying to ride heard on dozens of agencies while trying to create newer and bigger ones. It's like herding cats; you can't control all of them.
[These presidents are trying to ride heard on dozens of agencies while trying to create newer and bigger ones. It's like herding cats; you can't control all of them]–
Or herding Ducks that can't spell herd.
Or herding Ducks that can't spell herd .”
Quacking down on my spelling.” I heard you were tough.
BTW: Here is a nice book for you to read (not Reid). Herding Cats, A Life in Politics, a book written by Senator Trent Lott
And a late present to KK: Herding Cats (album) (1999), the second album by the band Gaelic Storm