U.S. Spies Missed Urgency of Islamic State Threat in Iraq

Wall Street Journal ^ | August 10, 2014 | By SIOBHAN GORMAN and JULIAN E. BARNES

[Oldeconomybuyer]

WASHINGTON—Days before the takeover of the Iraqi city of Mosul by the militant group calling itself the Islamic State, U.S. intelligence analysts were sharply divided over whether the group would seize the city, according to people familiar with the debate.

Although U.S. spy agencies have monitored and warned about the Islamic State over the past year, they often have underestimated the group's ability to make rapid operational gains, U.S. officials said. That was the case a week ago when militants launched a dramatic and successful offensive in Iraq's Kurdish region.

The inability of U.S. spy agencies to provide details about the timing of Islamic State offensives or their likelihood of success has touched off debate among U.S. national-security officials about whether intelligence on the group has been adequate.

The struggle to understand the capabilities of the group reflects the difficulty of collecting detailed intelligence on its internal planning. "Collection is tough," one senior U.S. official acknowledged.

[caww]

....”The federal government under our community organizer president is failing to do its basic duty — protect and defend the United States of America”.....

Our government is “something else” than American and has too many serving there who don't know our history, nor do they have any loyalty to our nation. They see the US as part of a Globalist World...and many of them will return to their home countries once things are established Worldwide for them to do so. They have no reason to be loyal or protect our country for the long term....everythings moving to the East...and they know it.

[WilliamofCarmichael]

[Career] intelligence officials have been frustrated by the Obama administration's [the occupiers] reluctance to get more involved in Iraq and Syria, current and former U.S. officials said.

News item about the source of the problems: the CBU standoff:

Aged 1960s Marxist-Alinsky campus radical, psycho spoiled brats and their ideological litters continue occupation of Capital Beltway University giant campus and buildings. The occupation last occurred during the entire eight years of the Clinton Administration. Authorities intend to "wait it out" again.

The occupation of Capital Beltway University giant campus is in sixth year.. authorities still refuse to act even though this time the occupiers are trying to run the University affairs excluding the University adults!

Occupiers squabbling among themselves about "social justice," "economic justice," and progressive causes dating back 100 years seem to be the main hindrance to career employees of the CBU. Republican leadership flummoxed, blame the Tea Party.

Leaders of the occupiers pictured below . . . .

[caww]

I agree....and further the mindset of those running our government are not about protecting the US as much as their own interests...here and abroad. There is no loyalty.

[lightman]

The CIA has tried to deal with rogue POTUSes before.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3190982/posts

Just sayin’.

[Ken H]

Clearly, they didn’t record enough of our phone calls.

[SECURE AMERICA]

“U.S. intelligence analysts were sharply divided over whether the group would seize the city, according to people familiar with the debate”

Well hell this one is easy. If you had sent a cruise missle in it would not have matter what they WERE going to do.. It would be over.

[stylin19a]

weren’t they identified as the “JV” ?

[Fido969]

Too busy spying on Tea Party and NRA members.

[The_Media_never_lie]

The inability of U.S. spy agencies to provide details about the timing of Islamic State offensives or their likelihood of success has touched off debate among U.S. national-security officials about whether intelligence on the group has been adequate.

If there is any debate on this at all, something is seriously wrong.

[bravo whiskey]

too busy spying on US citizens.

[Scrambler Bob]

7. Waterboarding.

bo spend his first 4 years using up intel gathered under Bush.

Then he got no more new stuff. So we are behind, big time.

[Parley Baer]

What a bs article. Malaki(sp) had been calling for the US to at least have drone strikes against ISIS. This build up has been known for quite some time and Obama did nothing. In fact along with McCain, Obama may have been training and helping ISIS thinking they would take over Syria.

[BuffaloJack]

The don’t spy on our enemies anymore; they spy on our citizens.

[ctdonath2]

I keep wondering “where the he11 did this ISIS bunch come from, going from nothing to owning Iraq in a few weeks?”

[PghBaldy]

The CIA failed to forsee 9/11 and the fall of he Iron CUrtain, among other things.

[lavaroise]

Indeed, 6 is probably the worse culprit, trying to fit ideology and education to intel and PC intimidation destroys all sense.

If it does not come from their thinking but someone else’s, they discount it.