CNN reports: Bush: Memo had no 'actionable intelligence'. The memo contains mostly historical information, such as bin Laden's desire to retaliate for Clinton's air strikes, but there's also new information, such as the FBI's notice of "suspicious activity" related to hijacking preparation. This latter is no small thing in hindsight. But prior to 9/11 virtually no one had imagined much less planned for planes being used as missiles. And within minutes after such an attack was known to be possible, passengers of Flight 93 immediately acted to prevent the further use of planes as missiles, and died trying. Now, if everyday citizens would take such measures, does anyone really beleive that President Bush, the Commander in Chief, would not have acted to prevent 9/11 had he had any specific information?
Some members of the media seem intent on giving exactly that impression, if only with their headlines: from Reuters (Bush Was Told of Al Qaeda Hijack Activity) to The Economic Times (Bush may have known about 9/11).
If this memo is the climax of the 9/11 commission, then if nothing else it is proof that the political opponents of President Bush are much more concerned with smearing him than in truly discovering what it would take to prevent another 9/11.
UPDATE: David Horowitz on How the Left Undermined America's Security Before 9/11. (Hat tip to Michael Jaehrling via HBL)
Posted by Forkum at April 11, 2004 06:33 PM
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