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EXCLUSIVE: Obama Got Pre-Christmas Intelligence Briefing About Terror Threats to "Homeland"
Newsweek ^ | 1/1/2010 | Mark Hosenball

Posted on 01/01/2010 6:44:00 PM PST by Saije

President Barack Obama received a high-level briefing only three days before Christmas about possible holiday-period terrorist threats against the US, Newsweek has learned. The briefing was centered on a written report, produced by US intelligence agencies, entitled "Key Homeland Threats", a senior US official said.

The senior Administration official, who asked for anonymity when discussing sensitive information, said that nowhere in this document was there any mention of Yemen, whose Al-Qaeda affiliate is now believed to have been behind the unsuccessful Christmas Day attempt by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to bring down a transatlantic airliner with a bomb hidden in his underpants. However, the official declined to disclose any other information about the substance of the briefing, including what kind of specific warnings, if any, the President was given about possibly holiday attacks and whether Yemen came up during oral discussions.

According to the senior official, the holiday threat briefing, one in a series of regularly-scheduled sessions with top counter-terrorism officials, was held in the White House Situation Room on December 22. Present were representatives of agencies involved in counter-terrorism policy and operations, including Attorney General Eric Holder, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and FBI Director Robert Mueller. The CIA and National Intelligence Directors Office were represented by deputy agency heads: CIA deputy director Steven Kappes, and David Gompert, the principal deputy to National Intelligence Czar Dennis Blair. Also present was Michael Leiter, director of the National Counter-terrorism Center, a unit of the Intelligence Czar's office which was created after 9/11 to ensure that intelligence reporting about possible terrorist plots was shared quickly among all US agencies who might have some capability to do something about it.

(Excerpt) Read more at blog.newsweek.com ...


TOPICS: Breaking News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: alqaedayemen; bhochristmas; bhogwot; briefing; epicfail; flight253; january; nationalsecurityfail; obama; terrorism; underwearczar; wot; yemen
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To: ColdOne

“I read it that way also. It is meant to absolve him.”

I don’t know. It looks like a negative story to me. The curious part is that it’s coming from Newsweek.


61 posted on 01/01/2010 7:58:56 PM PST by Tymesup
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To: Saije

What did Obama know and when did he know it?


62 posted on 01/01/2010 8:01:40 PM PST by Brytani (Support Allen West For Congress - www.allenwestforcongress.com)
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To: Typical_Whitey
So Obama Let it happen on Purpose. Thank God and God alone that the bomb was a dud. What will he say after the next attack?

Being the first new post-9/11 President elected he was essentially on the hook from Day 1. But this incident is, if you will, his 9/11 event where all actions, and lack there of, will be his responsibility. The "system that worked" and then two day later "failed" has forced O and Co. to essentially admit that they failed to review all anti-terrorism policies since taking over (they'll never admit it of course) but any future attacks will rest squarely on O and Co's shoulders - Bush policies supposedly inefficient will not be an avenue to blame. They will try of course but now those arguments are going to fall flat for all voters except the radical socialist left.

And to say that Yemen was not even on the map when we just performed military action there on the 19th and the Ft Hood murderer's spiritual guide was based there is beyond insulting.

63 posted on 01/01/2010 8:02:48 PM PST by torchthemummy (No Obama: Not Because He's Black But Because He's Red)
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To: Tymesup

This is Rahm saying that Obama was not served well by his intel folks. Blaming them is not a smart thing to do, and a mark of desperation caused by (undoubtedly) bad polling. It adds more pixels to the growing picture of incompetence and, in the face of Muslim terrorism, delusion.


64 posted on 01/01/2010 8:03:37 PM PST by qwertypie
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To: Saije; Typical_Whitey; Ernest_at_the_Beach
"Also present was Michael Leiter, director of the National Counter-terrorism Center, a unit of the Intelligence Czar's office which was created after 9/11 to ensure that intelligence reporting about possible terrorist plots was shared quickly among all US agencies who might have some capability to do something about it."
Is this the guy that's head will roll?
65 posted on 01/01/2010 8:04:22 PM PST by Marine_Uncle (Honor must be earned....)
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To: Saije

Imagine no Obama
Reed, Pelosi too
Unemployment falling
Our leaders’ words are true
Imagine no Obama
Transforming anything
You may say I’m a Patriot
Constitution in my hand
Be extreme, come and join us
Bring freedom and pride back to this land


66 posted on 01/01/2010 8:10:53 PM PST by dagogo redux (A whiff of primitive spirits in the air, harbingers of an impending descent into the feral.)
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To: dagogo redux

VERY GOOD!


67 posted on 01/01/2010 8:12:31 PM PST by onyx
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To: qwertypie

There is already a lot of bad blood between the administration, Congress and the intelligence community, e.g. when Pelosi said the CIA were a bunch of conscienceless torturers and liars. Like that makes for a real good relationship. And now the administration is doing it again. One wonders when will the intelligence community say enough is enough and start growing a set of balls of its own.


68 posted on 01/01/2010 8:13:07 PM PST by Ev Reeman
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To: ColdOne

I am watching a local news clip as I am reading this thread. Saying that Zero’s’s response was that “administration officials will be held accountable”Translated, that means”Igot the briefing, but others will be thrown under the bus if necessary’.


69 posted on 01/01/2010 8:14:55 PM PST by Quickgun (As a former fetus, I'm opposed to abortion. Pray for Obama,Psalms109:8)
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To: Saije

Yea! Fridaynight and New Years Night combined for this Bombshell! We know OBOZO IGNORES ALL NATIONAL SECURITY WARNINGS!! because OBOZO wants to pretend MUSLIM TERRORISTS ARE NICE PEOPLE WHO JUST HAPPEN TO HATE THE EVIL EMPIRE!


70 posted on 01/01/2010 8:16:13 PM PST by True Republican Patriot (May GOD Continue to BLESS Our Great President George W. Bush!!)
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To: massmike
And remember...Hillary Clinton held up that front page, ON THE FLOOR OF THE UNITED STATES SENATE! A grown woman, a US Senator behaved like that, at wartime, with boots on the ground in the middle east, surrounded by headchoppers.

And this was the beginning of their perfidy, I will never forgive her or her party, nor will my children and grandchildren.

71 posted on 01/01/2010 8:20:41 PM PST by roses of sharon (This is a feral government, broken from the civilizing constraints of the Constitution.)
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To: ColdOne

Or those fake “homelands” in South Africa to which people were relocated away from their real homelands, just so access to the capital could be easily blocked.


72 posted on 01/01/2010 8:22:47 PM PST by firebrand
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bookmark


73 posted on 01/01/2010 8:23:39 PM PST by potlatch
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To: Saije

“Also present was Michael Leiter, director of the National Counter-terrorism Center, a unit of the Intelligence Czar’s office which was created after 9/11 to ensure that intelligence reporting about possible terrorist plots was shared quickly among all US agencies who might have some capability to do something about it.”

Wonder if perhaps the State Dept might have been a good agency to include in this meeting?


74 posted on 01/01/2010 8:24:45 PM PST by austinaero ((More Bark, Less Wag))
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To: Saije

The left got all over Bush about his receiving intelligence about an attack pending on the U.S., so let’s see the hypocrisy here.


75 posted on 01/01/2010 8:25:05 PM PST by My Favorite Headache
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To: qwertypie
Exactly. Remember the very first leak to CNN by a “reliable” source blamed the CIA. If the CIA had shared the memo maybe he would have been able to board the plane.

Then another leak from another source to the WSJ saying everyone knew after than Nov 19th phone call; there was a big meeting the next day with people from all of the agencies.

The CIA seed had been planted. The media was running with that one.

Unfortunately for the WH, the CIA suffered a tremendous loss in Afghanistan. Even Rahm knows better than to falsely dump on the CIA while the bodies were still warm and not on home soil.

He simply revised his earlier plan.

76 posted on 01/01/2010 8:26:04 PM PST by Protect the Bill of Rights
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To: Saije

Four! The slice has got to be the toughest thing to fix in the game.....


77 posted on 01/01/2010 8:27:21 PM PST by b4its2late (Before you can control a horse, you have to break it. Sound familiar?)
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To: Tymesup

It is the holiday season. The regulars at Newsweek are on vacation. They will be back to normal on Monday.


78 posted on 01/01/2010 8:29:28 PM PST by ColdOne (ColdOne(Obama=Treason))
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To: Saije
nowhere in this document was there any mention of Yemen

More than one person should be fired. Many more.

79 posted on 01/01/2010 8:34:44 PM PST by savedbygrace (You are only leading if someone follows. Otherwise, you just wandered off... [Smokin' Joe])
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To: onyx; hoosiermama; STARWISE; maggief; GOPJ; sickoflibs; OafOfOffice; Grampa Dave; ...
Who’s leaking what?......was it Leon Panetta, since it’s his agency that’s getting the major blame.....

Mmmmmmm.......probably the same people who "lied" to Nazi Pelosi (/snic).

==================================================

The "leak" was so predictable, and breathtaking in its detail.

Obama Got Pre-Christmas Intelligence Briefing About Terror Threats to "Homeland." According to a senior US official, the holiday threat briefing------one in a series of regularly-scheduled sessions with top counter-terrorism officials-------was held in the White House Situation Room December 22.

Present were representatives of agencies involved in counter-terrorism policy and operations, including Atty Gen Eric Holder, DHS Secy Janet Napolitano and FBI Director Robert Mueller....and Michael Leiter, director of the National Counter-terrorism Center.

The CIA and National Intelligence Directors Office were represented by deputy agency heads: CIA deputy director Steven Kappes, and David Gompert, the principal deputy to National Intelligence Czar Dennis Blair.

The National Counter-terrorism Center, is a unit of the Intelligence Czar's office which was created after 9/11 to ensure that intelligence reporting about possible terrorist plots was shared quickly among all US agencies who might have some capability to do something about it.

===================================================

That sucker Ohaha, and his minions, better steel themselves------they stupidly set themselves up for an avalanche of leaking.

80 posted on 01/01/2010 8:35:25 PM PST by Liz
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