The 9/11 Report Raises More Serious Questions About The White House Statements On Intelligence
By JOHN W. DEAN
FindLaw Columnist
Tuesday, Jul. 29, 2003
Dean's argument here is not only fascinating but should be more widely publicized than here.
He argues that the reason the Bush administration refused to share his Daily Intelligence Briefings material for 8-6-01 and invoked executive privilege to so refuse was because it included warnings about Al Q flying planes into buildings. And he builds his case for this argument from the recently released congressional report on 9-11.
I recommend reading Dean's argument carefully. It includes this:
In September 1998, the [Intelligence Community] obtained information that Bin Laden's next operation might involve flying an explosive-laden aircraft into a U.S. airport and detonating it. (Emphasis added.)
In the fall of 1998, the [Intelligence Community] obtained information concerning a Bin Laden plot involving aircraft in the New York and Washington, D.C. areas.
In March 2000, the [Intelligence Community] obtained information regarding the types of targets that operatives of Bin Laden's network might strike. The Statute of Liberty was specifically mentioned , as were skyscrapers, ports, airports, and nuclear power plans. (Emphasis added.)
In sum, the 9/11 Report of the Congressional Inquiry indicates that the intelligence community was very aware that Bin Laden might fly an airplane into an American skyscraper.
This is information that was, in fact, released in the 9-11 report. |
