Posted on 08/26/2005 6:06:59 AM PDT by conservativecorner
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A long-awaited CIA inspector general's report on the agency's performance before the September 11, 2001, attacks includes detailed criticism of more than a dozen former and current agency officials, the New York Times reported on Friday.
The highly classified report aims its sharpest language at former CIA Director George Tenet, who is censured for failing to develop and carry out a strategic plan to take on al Qaeda in the years before 2001, even after he wrote in a 1998 memo to intelligence agencies that "we are at war" with it, the paper said, citing current and former government officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The report, requested by Congress three years ago, was delivered to the Senate and House Intelligence committees on Tuesday by current CIA Director Porter Goss. Its preparation and previous drafts have provoked strong emotions at the beleaguered agency, which has borne the brunt of public criticism for a series of intelligence failures, the Times said.
The report recommends that Goss convene "accountability boards" to recommend personnel actions against those faulted by the inspector general, who are identified by title rather than by name. Officials said the only action possible against Tenet and other officials who have retired would probably be to send them a letter of reprimand, the Times reported.
Tenet stepped down in July 2004 after seven years as director of central intelligence. Others criticized in the report include James Pavitt, the former deputy director of operations, and Cofer Black, the former director of the agency's Counterterrorist Center, the paper said.
Tenet would not comment on the report, and neither Pavitt nor Black could be reached for comment, the Times said.
Gee, you'd think his boss would have told him to get on it. [/sarc]
That I'm I'm sticking up for Tenant, BUT it's pretty hard to anything meaningful when your BOSS, POTUS "pants down to his knees" hasn't talked to you for four GD years!
Not to mention the lack of terrorist intelligent.
"NOT" was supposed to begin the 1st sentence.
Bush should have fired Tenet within a month of 9-11. Instead Tenet doesn't leave the CIA 'till June 2004. Not long after he's awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bush. What the h*** is Bush thinking? It's easy to see why the liberal MSM doesn't have much trouble advancing the 'Shrub ain't the sharpest knife in the drawer' concept ... I voted for him twice and I sometimes wonder about his thought process.
His boss and Monica were to busy getting it on.
The truth of the matter is that it is Congress that screwed up.
"I still didn't understand why President Bush kept him as long as he did knowing the how the CIA missed every new nuclear development.'
You, sir, have nailed the $64,000 question. Tenet was only one of many Clinton appointees who stayed on the job and accomplished significant damage or maintained a significant level of incompetence.
One example would be a federal attorney (prosecutor?) who failed to bring charges against someone who desparatly needed it. I believe her name was White, from N.Y. perhaps. But Tenet was in a rather important position, as it turns out.
> Bush should have fired Tenet within a month of 9-11.
> Instead Tenet doesn't leave the CIA 'till June 2004.
And after assuring Bush that it was a "slam dunk" that
Saddam had WMDs. Bush was smart enough to not claim that
himself, but that misleading "intel" from Tenet has
caused a great deal of trouble.
Tenet was either massively incompetent, or he deliberately
set up Bush.
Personally I think that Bush didn't want to instantly blame everything on Tenet because, well, it wasn't total incompetence that led to this. It's damn hard to find out what some religious extremists MIGHT be planning to do and do something about it. Since 41 was the DCI for Ford, he knows this and so does 43. Another thing, it IS true that Tenet did not enjoy a warm relationship with Clinton. Therefore, in my book, he ain't all bad.
This IG investigation is nothing more than a Cover Your Ass investigation where people mostly retired now are going to be blamed for it all. Frankly, they should accept some blame, but in this case, there's not much that can be done about it. Hell, it's hard to catch these A-holes.
And yes, it's true that DoD and CIA did have some problems throughout the late 80s and 90s with politically correct fags running too many offices. Hopefully, those people are gone now. What can I say? I didn't put their asses in there.
Excuse me .. WHO IS LEAKING THIS INFORMATION TO REUTERS ..??
WE WERE TOLD YESTERDAY THAT THIS REPORT WOULD NOT BE RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC - BUT ONLY TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS - SO WHO IN CONGRESS IS SPILLING THE BEANS ..??
Why was Tenet kept on? Ask the first George Bush and Brent Scowcroft. The question that remains to be answered: If the German intelligence agency (BfV - Office for the Protection of the Constitution) was maintaining a vigilance of Al Qaeda's Hamburg cell -- which included Atta and Benalshib among others -- was this information passed on to the CIA? If not, why not? If so, why were the two allowed to fly to the United States in July and August 2001? If so, was the information ever passed to Customs or the FBI? The whole FBI operation in the period 1998-2001 stinks to high heaven, and the fact that the blowhard Cofer Black would receive accolades for his work is galling.
Every one is "spilling the beans". Able-Danger has opened a can of worms, and the question of a CIA/FBI cover-up will finally have to be addressed. The people want it, and of course the press wants it. Do not expect any major revelations from the investigation Arlen Specter is discussing, but the House has already begun digging hard.
You will have to contact the reporter for that information. Good luck!
The truth is...the American people screwed up by electing Clinton.
When Saddam invaded Kuwait, Gen. Schwarzkopf's CENTCOM had just finished a training exercise with a similar scenario. His preparation collided with opportunity and he was a hero. In a similar way, Tenet was there with a plan to overthrow the Taliban when one was needed right after 9/11. He had one ready to go and it worked. I think the President felt some loyalty to Tenet after that.
The good news is that I doubt the CIA will take this lying down.
"he's awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bush"
I'd like to think he's livin' by the ol' axiom 'keep your friends close--keep your enemies closer. . .
I'd also like to think he had to let a few things play out after 9/11 in order to explicitly expose where the true fault lies. Remember, W's a gambler and Able Danger is like havin' 'pocket rockets'. . . hopefully. In addition, some sage advice from my Dad; Make 'um think yer dum--then ya can rit yer own chek!!
W's been t-totally "Misunderestimated"
Jus my 2 bits. . .
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