Posted on 05/25/2004 4:52:15 PM PDT by Wolfstar
17 minutes ago (at time of posting) The intelligence does not include a time, place or method of attack but is among the most disturbing received by the government since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to a senior federal counterterrorism official who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Tuesday.
Of most concern, the official said, is that terrorists may possess and use a chemical, biological or radiological weapon that could cause much more damage and casualties than a conventional bomb.
"There is clearly a steady drumbeat of information that they are going to attack and hit us hard," said the official, who described the intelligence as highly credible.
The official declined to provide any specifics about the sources of the information but said there was an unusually high level of corroboration.
Despite that, the official said there was no immediate plan to raise the nation's terrorism threat level from yellow, or elevated, to orange, or high. The threat level has been at yellow — midpoint on the five-color scale — since January.
Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller plan a news conference Wednesday to outline an intensive effort by law enforcement, intelligence and homeland security officials to detect and disrupt any potential plots. And the FBI plans to dispatch a bulletin to some 18,000 state and local law enforcement agencies warning of the threat.
Beginning with Saturday's dedication of the new World War II Memorial in Washington, the summer presents a number of high-profile targets in the United States. They include the G-8 summit in Georgia next month that will attract top officials from some of America's closest allies, the Democratic National Convention in Boston in July and the Republican National Convention in August in New York.
The FBI and Homeland Security Department also are concerned about so-called soft targets such as shopping malls anywhere in the United States that offer a far less protected environment than a political convention hall.
U.S. authorities repeatedly have said al-Qaida is determined to mount an attack on U.S. soil, in part to announce to the world that it remains capable of doing so despite the money and effort that has gone into homeland security in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
There also is concern terrorists might try to mount an attack to coincide with the November election. The political fallout from the March 11 train bombings in Spain taught al-Qaida that an attack timed to an election can have a major impact. Spain's former ruling party was ousted in the voting that followed the bombing, which killed 191 and injured more than 2,000.
The official did not say how many suspected al-Qaida or other terrorist operatives are believed in the country, whether they made their way into the United States recently or have been here for some time. The FBI has warned in the past that Islamic extremist groups may attempt to recruit non-Middle Easterners or women for attacks because they would be less likely to arouse suspicion.
Special security attention already is being focused to the nation's rail, subway and bus lines. The FBI last week sent out an intelligence bulletin to law enforcement agencies urging vigilance against suicide bombers, who have been used by terror groups worldwide to devastating effect but not so far in the United States.
Separately, Immigration and Customs Enforcement chief Michael Garcia told reporters Tuesday that some 2,300 of its agents are being deployed to assist in security for the high-profile events scheduled this summer in the United States. These include as many as 20 agents each day working with the Secret Service to protect the campaigns of President Bush (news - web sites) and Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites), the Democratic presidential candidate.
Garcia said his agency also is working to "tighten the investigative system" to ensure that terrorists do not enter the United States by way of human smuggling operations or through the vast, largely unprotected border with Canada.
Wait until we hear from Pelosi Galore! She'll say that this was all planned out.
You know, I have had this map for over a year. Someone posted it on FR at that time, and it concerned me so much that I saved it for myself.
So many American's believe that "they" are not here, but this just goes to show that they ARE here. They have been living among us for 8-10 years if not longer. Building business's, raising kids, etc.......fitting in........waiting.....
Maine alone has moved in over 1,200 Somali's in Lewiston a few years ago. And most of them are on welfare. :(
Not Gay days at Disney?
Maybe it's just not important enough for His Highness, Bill O'. Might actually take the focus off him for a bit.
Clint, I always heard about all the militia we have living "in the hills." Well! Where the hell ARE they! LOL!
Yeah no surprise really. Sooner or later we will get hit again. I checked worldnetdaily and fox news to see their headline on this and then checked CNN.com for comparison- what a joke, CNN's headline is "France, Russia question U.S. handover in Iraq" with a picture of Iraqi's and the caption "Men demonstrate against the U.S.-led coalition after a shrine in Najaf was damaged." - The enemy within' is winning. We are in big trouble.
Laurie Doooooooo just announced that Ashcroft will be on Fox&Friends in the morning.
This summer, the well dressed patriot will be carrying a cell phone, digital camera and concealed weapon.
Once again we read that terrorists may attack in an attempt to influence the outcome of the presidential election.
"Senator Kerry, why does al Qaeda want you elected?"
Boy oh boy, the number of people who actually buy into what you said sardonically is scary. Sometimes I wonder if half the human race has an IQ somewhere below room temperature.
I'm pretty sure that's the map from Steven Emerson's excellent book American Jihad. It was the first book I read after 9/11 and focused almost exclusively on the sleeper cells in America. It's a book we should all read; maybe I'll get it from the library again and re-read it.
And "back packs" give me the shivers...........
If such an attack takes place we can thank the liberal press, the Democratic Party and Hollywood for helping AlQueda do us all in.
I'd blame the pouous borders and lack of immigration control.
Now, based on your tagline, don't you think this scenerio playes right into the hands of the "Marshall Law / suspended elections" crowd?
Yes. But they don't know how Americans would react.
If thousands more Americans were killed by Islamic terrorists, then our reaction might be stronger than even we would bring ourselves to imagine mow. We might do things the morality or necessity of which we would spend the next century debating among ourselves and with the Europeans. But we would be alive to debate these matters and wonder about the fate of our eternal souls when we die of natural causes after long lives.
Consider them pung.
If we're very lucky, maybe all those dimbulb Dems will sit around Boston for a month waiting for Johnny Boy to accept the nomination.
Granted, there are some things that might hinder us, such as a nuke on Wall Street. Or having a good part of our fleet sunk in Pearl Harbor. But this sleeping giant is frankly still half asleep (9/11 didn't do it, not really) -- and once awakened and really filled with a terrible resolve... well... I would not want to be on the other side.
Will it be a straight and steady road up from here? No, of course not. But it's the darkest days that will impel us the most quickly to victory -- we have the power, we just need the resolve.
I'm sorry. I don't mean to be Ms. Doom and Gloom, but I think it's better to be aware then not.
Like I said, Maine moved in over 1,200 Somali's in Lewiston a few years back. To which most are still on welfare!
And the 9-11 terrorist stopped in Portland, Maine the night before. Now, just WHO did he talk to?????
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