Posted on 08/05/2006 7:19:55 AM PDT by ricoshea
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Sept. 11 commission was so frustrated with repeated misstatements by the Pentagon and FAA about their response to the 2001 terror attacks that it considered an investigation into possible deception, the panel's chairmen say in a new book.
Republican Thomas Kean and Democrat Lee Hamilton also say in "Without Precedent" that their panel was too soft in questioning former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani - and that the 20-month investigation may have suffered for it.
The book, a behind-the-scenes look at the investigation, recounts obstacles the authors say were thrown up by the Bush administration, internal disputes over President Bush's use of the attacks as a reason for invading Iraq, and the way the final report avoided questioning whether U.S. policy in the Middle East may have contributed to the attacks.
Kean and Hamilton said the commission found it mind-boggling that authorities had asserted during hearings that their air defenses had reacted quickly and were prepared to shoot down United Airlines Flight 93, which appeared headed toward Washington.
(Excerpt) Read more at drudgereport.com ...
Just a tad late for this to come out. If this is true then it merely points up the colossal waste of time this investigation was. For these fools to actually ADMIT they were NOT doing their job because they feared the reaction in the press speaks volumes for their credibility or lack thereof.
Memo to 9/11 Commission: We doubt your work. You left more important information out of your final report regarding Al Qaeda's direct relationship with Iraq out than you put in.
You neglected to mention Al Gore was bought off by the airline industry and refused to call for reinforced cockpit doors.
Among the issues:
- Iraq. The commission threatened to splinter over the question of investigating the administration's use of 9/11 as a reason for going to war. The strongest proponent was original member Max Cleland, a Democratic former senator who later stepped down for separate reasons.
If Cleland had not resigned, the commission probably would not have reached unanimity, according to the book. Ultimately, commissioners decided to touch briefly on the Iraq war by concluding there was no "collaborative relationship" between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida; the administration had asserted there were substantial contacts between the two.
- Israel. The commission disagreed as to how to characterize al-Qaida's motives for attacking the U.S., with Hamilton arguing that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the presence of U.S. forces in the Middle East were major contributors.
Unidentified members believed that "listing U.S. support for Israel as a root cause of al-Qaida's opposition to the United States indicated that the United States should reassess that policy," which those commission members did not want.
Ultimately, the panel made a brief statement noting that U.S. policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Iraq are "dominant staples of popular commentary across the Arab and Muslim world."
This is now in their book.Can you believe this?
This panel was filled with nothing but media hounds and anti-Bush jerks. These people wanted to blame the Bush Admin so bad but couldn't since it was Clinton's Admin that was at fault. However, they refused to put the blame where it should have gone. The panel ended up blaming the NY Fire Dept and police. The whole panel was a farce & a waste of taxpayers money. NOw the hounds are writing books to generate money. Ah sheesh!
Why not go ahead and just blame the people that died for being there....Just the same.
Disgusting. What little respect I had for ANY of those members just flew right out the window.
JAMIE GORELICK SHOULD BE IN PRISON....Kean and Hamilton are IDIOTS.
That is typical. Build a "wall" making it impossible for the CIA and FBI to share info about foreign terrorists. When the terrorists finally attack, blame the NYPD and Fire Department, many of whose members died as a result of the attack. Help the terrorists and blame the victims, while all the time putting on an air of moral superiority. I'm outraged beyond words...
It can be worse. It will only get worse. The moonbat left compares the victims to Nazi war criminals. That moonbat faction pretty much owns the soul (?!) of the Democrat party.
They were looking in the wrong places. They should have been questioning Gorelick and Benvenista under oath.
A major problem was WITHIN the Commission.
If nothing else, it's good to see these people questioning the findings of a commission that most of here on FreeRepublic recognized as a farce from the moment it was created. If I had been called to testify, I would have felt no obligation to tell the truth to this bunch of @ssholes.
Wasn't the clamoring of the 'Jersey Girls' one of the main reasons the 9/11 commission was created ? Correct me if I'm wrong on that.
Any chance for RESPECT was lost when Jamie Gorelick and SLADE GORTON were named to the commission.
I hate it when history is "rewritten". Those saying they were "prepared" to shoot down United 93 weren't asked if they received the order.
(Do you realize there were 22 reports of "hijacked" planes out of about 3,000 planes in the air?)
All this is doing is feeding the nuts on the left that the government is hiding its involvement in 9/11.
They heard that Rudy's serious about running.
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