[meenie]

I wondered from the beginning of this investigation why a terrorist would draw attention to himself to apply for a hazmat license. If he figured on transporting materials for evil purposes, he surely would not draw attention to it by licensing himself.

[wjeanw]

I wondered the same thing. However, if their plans to transport hazzardous materials were based on a longer time frame than just the making of one bomb, it would be to their advantage to have the licenses. Given how lax state officials have been, they could haul the chemicals repeatedly as needed, especially over state lines where usually there is some sort of cursory check. It also points to maybe a labor shortage. It would take a more highly educated Muslim to get a truck license since he would have to be able to read English fairly well. My husband just got a license recently and there are a lot of safety requirements and procedures that must be followed specifically. (The fake licenses related to carrying hazzardous materials, not the initial truck licenses.)

[Ditter]

How could he get a company to turn over a truck & a cargo for him to carry unless he presented them with a license?

[lafroste]

"Hazardous Materials" is a pretty big categorization. They would need the license to pick up the materials in the first place. Probably, this refers to raw materials that they would then process into a final weapon. Hazardous materials could be as innocuous as deisel fuel and ammonium nitrate fertilizer.