Rules for Hiring Intelligence Agents Come Under Fire After Attacks

The Wall Street Journal ^ | Thursday, September 13, 2001 | JOHN J. FIALKA

[TroutStalker]

WASHINGTON -- The weakest link in America's massive chain of intelligence activities -- a lack of savvy spies on the ground -- finally broke, opening the door to Tuesday's deadly terrorist attacks.

Secretary of State Colin L. Powell summed it up this way in an interview on NBC: The U.S. has been successful in the past at thwarting several terrorist attacks, "but in this case, we did not get the cueing we needed."

[Oldeconomybuyer]

This is what is known as our "Peace Dividend". Years and years of gutting our military and foreign intelligence. We reap what we sow.

[WarEagle]

Mr. Smith said the rules were drawn up in 1995, based on Federal Bureau of Investigation guidelines, after a probe into CIA operations in Guatemala revealed some agents had records of human-rights violations.

And? People we hire to spy are supposed to have good credit ratings? Contribute to the ACLU? Know the words to Kumbaya? Puhleeze! This is either rank stupidity or a conscious effort to weaken our ability to defend ourselves.

This is what we get for having a president who had no regard for the US, its laws and customs, or its people. Are you satisfied now, Bubba?

[mewzilla]

How do they excuse letting people like Gary Condit have access to this info?? Remember what Daschle said about the blackmailability of other committee members?? I'm more worried about Congressmen and Senators who have access to this stuff than people we hire and at least marginally check out.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

I suspect that SECDEF Rumsfield was speaking directly to members of congress when he spoke about leaking confidential information.

[mewzilla]

I wondered about that.

[TroutStalker]

...rules adopted during the Clinton administration that tightened restrictions on recruiting agents within supposed terrorist groups. The rules bar agents from posing as journalists or clergy, and hiring those who might be suspected of human-rights violations.

Deliberately designed to appeal to the soccer moms and bleeding hearts who think we need to play clean and fair on the field of national defense, and our enemies will do the same. Now they have to explain to their little darlin's the meaning of war.

I saw Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (anti gunner whose husband was killed by Colin Ferguson on the train) give a one minute speech on the House floor yesterday, and she sounded like she could have used a handgun on a terrorist at that very minute.

[Irene Adler]

"I saw Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (anti gunner whose husband was killed by Colin Ferguson on the train) give a one minute speech on the House floor yesterday, and she sounded like she could have used a handgun on a terrorist at that very minute."

I hope all this newfound democratic resolve won't melt away once the funerals are over. Do you suppose they realize, privately at least, what the clintonistas did (with a little earlier assistance from Carter and Frank Church) when they dismantled, politicized, P/C-ized, and defunded security, intelligence, and the military ?

[TroutStalker]

Perhaps, but they will never admit it publicly.

[willyone]

The Barney, Mr.Rogers school of national defense. God help us. We are being protected by idiots. Who the hell allowed these morons to be in charge? yet another consquence of the fixation with advanced degrees as the sole determiner of ability. I want spies that kick ass and take names not with a masters in liberal arts and an "I love you,you love me mentality" .