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Unleashing the CIA: Bush has done the right thing
Manchester Union Leader ^
| January 2, 2005
| Editorial
Posted on 01/02/2006 6:17:17 AM PST by billorites
THE WASHINGTON Post on Friday reported the existence of a massive covert program within the CIA to catch, detain and interrogate terrorists worldwide.
Like President Bush's NSA program to eavesdrop on terror suspects without waiting for a warrant from the notoriously sluggish FISA court, the CIA program has drawn its share of short-sighted condemnation, as if 9/11 never happened.
Here is how the Post described the nation's ability to gather intelligence on terrorists nearly four and a half years ago: "The CIA faced the day after the 2001 attacks with few al Qaeda informants, a tiny paramilitary division and no interrogators, much less a system for transporting terrorism suspects and keeping them hidden for interrogation."
President Bush changed all that. He has, according to the Post, created the largest covert CIA program since World War II. And it has been highly successful.
"Indeed, the CIA, working with foreign counterparts, has been responsible for virtually all of the success the United States has had in capturing or killing al Qaeda leaders since Sept. 11, 2001," the Post reported.
Pardon us if we don't become outraged that the President of the United States transformed a weak CIA into an impressively effective tool for finding and defeating America's enemies.
The President is criticized for pushing the CIA's actions to the limits of the law. But just imagine if he weren't doing that. Imagine, say, President Kerry letting terrorists run free as he listened hand on chin, brows furrowed to lawyers quibbling over executive authority.
As with the NSA program, President Bush has decided that if he is going to err, he will err on the side of our nation's safety. Thank God the Oval Office is occupied by someone willing to do that.
TOPICS: Editorial; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bush; cia; eavesdrop; homelandsecurity; nsa; praise; spying; terrorism; wiretap; wot
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To: billorites
2
posted on
01/02/2006 6:22:33 AM PST
by
BlueAngel
To: billorites
"President Bush has decided that if he is going to err, he will err on the side of our nation's safety. Thank God the Oval Office is occupied by someone willing to do that."
Bump!
3
posted on
01/02/2006 6:24:24 AM PST
by
nuconvert
(No More Axis of Evil by Christmas ! TLR) [there's a lot of bad people in the pistachio business])
To: billorites
McCain's "anti-torture" amendment does deserve a second look, wonder WHO he was trying to protect? Who could it be under investigation for leaking classified intel? At least now with that amendment they won't be subjected to "torture".
To: billorites
Sadly, many American citizens don't remember 9/11 ever happened.
5
posted on
01/02/2006 6:26:56 AM PST
by
mtbopfuyn
(Legality does not dictate morality... Lavin)
To: billorites
All I can say is ------AMEN!
To: billorites
So they should be able to track down these leakers.
7
posted on
01/02/2006 6:27:29 AM PST
by
CindyDawg
To: billorites
President Bush changed all that. He has, according to the Post, created the largest covert CIA program since World War II. And it has been highly successful. Well duh.
I would expect nothing less.
What does suprise me is the willingness of polititians of the opposition party to out our national secrets and put the security of our nation and its citizens at risk just for the chance of regaining political power.
I mean, what good is ruining the president and regaining power if you can't exercise it because you are dead?
In my opinion (and it's JUST MY opinion) democrats are commiting acts of treason. And their actions remind me a lot of how the old Soviet Union political system was run. If I understand correctly, the Soviets were more interested in political party first, all else came second.
8
posted on
01/02/2006 6:28:16 AM PST
by
bayliving
(Dems used to be funny. Now they're just dangerous.)
To: billorites
Imagine, say, President Kerry letting terrorists run free as he listened hand on chin, brows furrowedHa!
Yeah right... with Sandy Berger, Joe Wilson & Jim Hoagland whispering in his ear. Thank God it didn't happen.
9
posted on
01/02/2006 6:30:47 AM PST
by
johnny7
(“Iuventus stultorum magister”)
To: billorites
10
posted on
01/02/2006 6:39:04 AM PST
by
stephenjohnbanker
(Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our troops at home and abroad!!)
To: billorites
Another leaker giving the Compost information.
11
posted on
01/02/2006 6:44:55 AM PST
by
golfisnr1
(Democrats are like roaches, hard to get rid of.>)
To: stephenjohnbanker
A persistant thme is the insistance that lawyers must run everything. At $500/hour to quibble, parse and endlessly appeal we could all be dead and broke, if we agree to that proposition.
To: ClaireSolt
Yeah, funny because EVEN THE DEMOCRATS admitted 911 happened because we were trying to prosecute with legal system and layers than fight a war.
You can probably even get audio quotes of those exact words by dems...
Yet they continue (and the MSM... just wait... push polls are next) to demand that we MUST do that now, and if not, then BUSH should be impeached.
WTF is up with that?
How can they be THAT stupid?
13
posted on
01/02/2006 6:53:48 AM PST
by
FreedomNeocon
(I'm in no Al-Samood for this Shi'ite.)
To: ClaireSolt
Most lawyers belong at the bottom of the ocean : )
14
posted on
01/02/2006 7:03:37 AM PST
by
stephenjohnbanker
(Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our troops at home and abroad!!)
To: Just mythoughts
McCain's "anti-torture" amendment does deserve a second look, wonder WHO he was trying to protect? Who could it be under investigation for leaking classified intel? At least now with that amendment they won't be subjected to "torture".
Did the "anti-torture" law affect one iota what law enforcement in this country can do to suspected criminals?
15
posted on
01/02/2006 7:16:21 AM PST
by
kenavi
("Remember, your fathers sacrificed themselves without need of a messianic complex." Ariel Sharon)
To: mtbopfuyn
DNC national security strategy memo:
In case of domestic attack-
Bush failed to connect the dots.
In absence of domestic attack-
Bush connected too many dots.
To: johnny7
Even worse, imagine if "The Tree" had been sitting in the Oval Office on 9-11-2001. The one eyed Mullah would still be running Afghanistan, women would still be being shot in the soccer stadium. Saddam and his sons would still be in charge at Abu Ghrab Prison, and rather than being humiliated, many would be subjected to real torture, rather than humiliation and panties on their heads.
Terrorists would still be training in camps in both countries, as well in Iran. They'd be sending even more here, and the Gorelick Wall would still be in place, so we'd not be catching many of them.
Many Americans now living would likely be dead. Many Malls, office buildings, hospitals and sports stadiums would be piles of rubble or burnt out shells.
Makes me feel even better about the "Get out of Cheney's House" chants of the winter of 2000-2001.
17
posted on
01/02/2006 7:47:44 AM PST
by
El Gato
(The Second Amendment is the Reset Button of the U.S. Constitution)
To: kenavi
"Did the "anti-torture" law affect one iota what law enforcement in this country can do to suspected criminals?"
I do not know what McCain's law actually changed, but I am suspecting that there is more to McCain's law than originally appeared. Especially since it came out of nowhere after somebody did some big time leaking. Over a year + ago.
Now from what the President has said OBL's gang has been calling people that reside within the USA, now who would it be that would interrogate these individuals, citizens or not? Is there a connection to them and McCain's law? I do not know but seems a bit odd the fervor in which McCain pushed his law through, and totally ignored that tax increase that will go into effect Jan 1 for millions of Americans.
Further national security also includes energy security and McCain was not a happy camper to have ANWAR attached to anything like his law was.
To: bayliving
It really is clear the difference these days. Conservatives are American Citizens FIRST, political Activists some where down the list. The Hysteric Leftist running today's Democrat Party are Political Activists 1st and some where WAY down the list remember they are American Citizens also.
19
posted on
01/02/2006 8:27:43 AM PST
by
MNJohnnie
(We do not create terrorism by fighting the terrorists. We invite terrorism by ignoring them.--GWBush)
To: billorites
Excellent article. Thanks for posting ALL of it.
20
posted on
01/02/2006 8:38:41 AM PST
by
upchuck
(Article posts of just one or two sentences do not preserve the quality of FR. Lazy FReepers be gone!)
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