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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: epicure who wrote (23239)	7/24/2003 11:15:04 PM
From: epicure	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

Report on Sept. 11 could affect Bush's campaign By William E. Gibson 25jul03 A report released today disclosing intelligence failures before the 2001 terrorist attacks added another blow to public confidence in the agencies charged with keeping America safe. The disclosures, piled on top of growing doubts about the Bush administration's arguments for the war in Iraq, will further erode public faith in government, which had briefly flourished when Americans united in a common cause against terrorism. The report and the daily drip, drip, drip of evidence about questionable intelligence on Iraq's purported weapons of mass destruction and al-Qaida links now will dominate much of the political debate, giving an opening to Democrats who are challenging President Bush. In political terms, the biggest beneficiary could be Florida Sen. Bob Graham, who led the congressional investigation and is running for president largely on security issues. Flanked by relatives of some of the victims in the attacks, Graham on Thursday chastised the intelligence agencies for failing to heed early warnings, and he accused the Bush administration and also Congress of failing to bolster the nation's security. "The administration and Congress have not initiated the reforms necessary to reduce the chances of a repetition of Sept. 11," Graham declared. "Because of the failure to launch a sustained and aggressive attack on international terrorists, our country today is no safer than it was on Sept. 11, 2001." He warned that officials from foreign governments still may be supporting terrorist cells in the United States, including his home state. The featured locale in the report was San Diego, where the FBI had contact with two hijackers before the attacks. "In other areas where hijackers were known to have lived for significant periods of time - which would include Northern Virginia, New Jersey and South Florida - there should be a similar review of the records, as was done in San Diego," Graham said. At the least, what has been dubbed "the 911 report" will give Graham, a relatively unknown candidate, widespread national visibility. On Thursday, he was all over the television news shows, while shining in the spotlight on Capitol Hill. The political impact on Bush remains uncertain. Opinion polls show his approval ratings drooping and public confidence waning, though a majority of Americans still feel a strong personal bond with the president. In the latest TIME/CNN poll, Bush's job-approval rating dropped to 55 percent, where it stood before the 2001 attacks. This and other polls indicate the public is troubled by evidence indicating the White House may have exaggerated potential security threats from Iraq. "Sixty-three per cent say the whole thing has lowered their confidence in the president, at least a little," said Steven Kull, a professor of political science who directed a poll this month for the University of Maryland. "But there is still a tendency to be protective of the president." "If it wasn't for the Iraq war, there would be a stronger willingness to forgive the president for whatever lapses occurred before 9-11," Kull said. "But he told the American people there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq that did not show up, and he said there were links between Iraq and al-Qaida that did not show up, and now it comes out that the intelligence agencies weren't on top of things before 9-11. This will have a cumulative effect, so it's more of a problem for the president now."