Posted on 02/03/2008 8:21:48 PM PST by Mr. Brightside
Ties between White House, Sept 11 chief
By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer
Sun Feb 3, 6:25 PM ET
WASHINGTON - The Sept. 11 commission's executive director had closer ties with the White House than publicly disclosed and tried to influence the final report in ways that the staff often perceived as limiting the Bush administration's responsibility, a new book says.
Philip Zelikow, a friend of then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, spoke with her several times during the 20-month investigation that closely examined her role in assessing the al-Qaida threat. He also exchanged frequent calls with the White House, including at least four from Bush's chief political adviser at the time, Karl Rove.
Zelikow once tried to push through wording in a draft report that suggested a greater tie between al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and Iraq, in line with White House claims but not with the commission staff's viewpoint, according to Philip Shenon's "The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation."
Shenon, a New York Times reporter, says Zelikow sought to intimidate staff to avoid damaging findings for President Bush, who at the time was running for re-election, and Rice. Zelikow and Rice had written a book together in 1995 and he would later work for her after the commission finished its job and she became secretary of state in 2005.
The Associated Press obtained an audio version of Shenon's book, which is to go on sale Tuesday.
Reached by the AP, Zelikow provided a 131-page statement with information he said was provided for the book. In it, Zelikow acknowledges talking to Rove and Rice during the course of the commission's work despite a general pledge he made not to. But he said the conversations never dealt with politics.
The White House had no immediate comment Sunday.
According to the book, when Democratic commissioner Bob Kerrey learned the extent of Zelikow's ties to the administration, he confronted Republican chairman Tom Kean and demanded to know why someone with such apparent conflicts of interest had been hired.
"Look Tom," Kerrey is quoted as saying, "either he goes or I go." Kean eventually persuaded Kerrey to stay.
Former Rep. Lee Hamilton, the panel's Democratic vice chairman, praised Zelikow as a "person of integrity" who was upfront in disclosing his background and White House contacts. It made sense for commission staff to contact the White House regularly to get information, Hamilton said, and the book also notes that Zelikow was such a dogged negotiator that even then-White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales found him irritating and subsequently refused to meet with him.
"Did he try to sway the report to protect the administration? I think the answer was no," Hamilton told the AP.
The book says phone logs maintained by the commission's executive assistant showed at least two calls from Rove to Zelikow's office number in June 2003, and two more calls in September. During that time, the commission was in the midst of its fact-finding.
Zelikow ordered the assistant to stop keeping phone records of his contacts with the White House, the book said, but the panel's general counsel instructed her to ignore the order.
The phone logs do not record Zelikow's calls out, nor do they show calls on his cell phone, which he relied on for most outgoing calls. Records from the Government Accountability Office, which maintained some of the commission's phone records, showed frequent calls from Zelikow to telephone numbers in area code 202, with the telephone prefix 4-5-6 — the prefix exclusive to the White House, the book says.
Zelikow, in his written statement, said Rove had called with questions about the Bush library and other business related to Zelikow's work at the University of Virginia. Zelikow also said he enlisted Rice's logistical aid on behalf of the commission at one point to get Saudi cooperation so the panel could interview their citizens.
"Rove and I didn't really know each other," he said in the statement. "I don't recall ever having an extended conversation with him, and certainly not about politics or the commission."
The book seeks to raise new questions about the independence of the bipartisan commission, which was created in 2002 to investigate government missteps that led to the Sept. 11 attacks. Initially opposed by the White House, the panel issued a unanimous 567-page final report in July 2004 during the height of the presidential campaign that did not blame Bush or former President Clinton for the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people but did say they each failed to make anti-terrorism a priority.
The book says that in early 2004, Zelikow allegedly sought to add to an initial staff report wording that linked al-Qaida to Iraq. The wording would have said the terrorist network repeatedly tried to communicate with the government of Saddam Hussein, a claim of cooperation the administration had cited to justify the war in Iraq. After a staff protest, Zelikow backed down; the final report said there was no "collaborative relationship" between Saddam and al-Qaida. Zelikow has said that he simply wanted the panel to keep an open mind on the issue.
And Jamie Gorelock had nothing to do with the Clinton Administration and the brick wall that was set up between the CIA and FBI.
It’s revelations like this that might possibly prevent President Bush from serving a third term.
Gorelick not Gorelock.
Wasn’t Jaime (?) Gorelick on the Commission? Wasn’t THAT a flagrant conflict of interest?
Wasn’t Jaime (?) Gorelick on the Commission? Wasn’t THAT a flagrant conflict of interest?
Don’t forget, Bush’s people sanitizing the files at the NSC, sneaking classified files out in their underwear and socks.
Further it was Hillary’s gal pal Gorelick builder of WALLS first at the Pentagon then at Justice who got herself on this liberal Soviet style GET Bush commission.
I do not recall one peeeeeep out of that dragon slayer McCain who only sneers at his conquest of getting Rummy’s head about what a hoax and con job this commission was really allll about.
Al Q/Saddam We already know they were connected. Clinton knew that in 93 after the first bombing of the WTC.
But I never trusted the two Z’s... especially this one; He’s a fifth columnist. Things aren’t always as they seem.
Another one who shouldn’t have been on the hill from the beginning.
What a bunch of horse pucky!
And Ben Veniste. As a matter of fact Zoellie and this Z were helping them when it came to what goes to the Comm. and what doesn’t.
Anybody who knows Yasin, Yousef, AQ No. 2 and others know Saddam’s AQ connects.
BTW, we have the docs.
Oh my God! What if that was true? heh
Care to elaborate on that?
Is see, the commission whose sole purpose was to white wash the Clinton administration was actually protecting the Bush administration...riiiight. BDS.
We can expect much more of this type of crap from the Left injected into the Presidential Campaign season by their useful idiots in the MSM. It will get even worse if Romney wins the Nomination instead of their chosen Candidate McPain.
Gonna get so ugly we’ll welcome a picture of Helen Thomas.
I took it tongue in cheek as talking about Sandy Burglar
Yeah, even a RAT knows the 9/11 “commission” was out to screw the President and Republicans.
It’s going to be a long 10 months.
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