"But the groundwork for Al Qai'da took place during the '90s"
Wrong. Abdallah Azzam used "Al Qaeda=the base" before 1988. OBL set up a militant group in August 1988.
Source: Jason Burke, Al Qaeda, 2003.
So if you want to distribute "blame" then Bush I had 4 years to deal with OBL.
But the problem is far more subtle.
Al Qaeda was off the radar until 1996 when in a CIA report Al Qaeda was mentioned once "by 1985 bin Laden had...organized an Islamic Salvation Fron, or al-Qaeda, to support mujahideen in Afghanistan." many details about OBL's activities but no mention of Al Qaeda again.
Clinton called his 1998 retaliatory attack an attack on " The network of radical groups affiliated with and funded by Usama bin Laden...."
Bush II didn't react to Clinton's advisors on the Al Qaeda question until after Sept. 11. That subject has been discussed here by many.
From your source:
"Wolfowitz fidgeted and scowled ... "Well, I just don't understand why we are beginning by talking about this one man bin Laden."
"We are talking about a network of terrorist organizations called al Qaeda, that happens to be led by bin Laden, and we are talking about that network because it and it alone poses an immediate and serious threat to the United States," I answered. ...
Wolfowitz turned to me. "You give bin Laden too much credit. He could not do all these things like the 1999 attack on New York, without a state sponsor. Just because FBI and CIA have failed to find the linkages does not mean they don't exist." I could hardly believe it, but Wolfowitz was actually spouting the totally discredited Laurie Mylroie theory that Iraq was behind the 1993 truck bomb at the World Trade Center, a theory that had been investigated for years and found to be totally untrue.
Clarke's book also recounts a conversation on September 12, 2001, in which President Bush himself said:
"Go back over everything, everything. See if Saddam did this. See if he's linked in any way..."
I was once again taken aback, incredulous, and it showed. "But Mr. President, al Qaeda did this."
"I know, I know, but ... see if Saddam was involved. Just look. I want to know any shred ..."
"Absolutely, we will look ... again." I was trying to be more respectful, more responsive. "But, you know, we have looked several times for state sponsorship of al Qaeda and not found any real linkages to Iraq. Iran plays a little, as does Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia, Yemen."" |
