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Staff members of the Sept. 11 commission are investigating allegations by a GOP congressman that lead hijacker Mohamed Atta had been identified as a potential threat by a highly classified Defense Department program a year or more before the attacks occurred. Commission officials confirmed a report in yesterday's New York Times that two staff members interviewed a uniformed military officer, who alleged in July 2004 that a secret program called "Able Danger" had identified Atta as a potential terrorist threat in 1999 or early 2000....." "....Panel investigators viewed the claim as unlikely..." "..Weldon recently published a book...Many of the allegations...

NO FURTHER COMMENT NEEDED________________________________________________________President Bush, November 4, 2004: “I've earned capital in this election -- and I'm going to spend it for what I told the people I'd spend it on, which is -- you've heard the agenda: Social Security and tax reform, moving this economy forward, education, fighting and winning the war on terror.” (President George W. Bush, Press Conference, 11/4/04)The House (336-75) And The Senate (89-2) Have Now Both Passed The Conference Report For The Intelligence Reorganization Bill By Large Margins. (S. 2845, Roll Call Vote #544: Adopted 336-75, 12/7/04; S. 2845, Roll Call Vote #216: Adopted 89-2,...

House Republicans on Saturday blocked passage of legislation addressing the Sept. 11 Commission's terror-fighting recommendations to President Bush, but GOP leaders said they would press the effort later this year. However, the failure to get an agreement in Congress' postelection session most likely means the legislation will die for the year. "It's hard to reform. It's hard to make changes," Speaker Dennis Hastert said as House members left town after a rare weekend session. Democrats immediately blamed House Republicans. "The decision to pull the 9/11 bill is a clear and unambiguous failure by House Republicans to protect our nation, who...

In a defeat for President Bush, rebellious House Republicans on Saturday derailed legislation to overhaul the nation's intelligence agencies along lines recommended by the Sept. 11 commission. "It's hard to reform. It's hard to make changes," said Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., who sought unsuccessfully to persuade critics among the GOP rank and file to swing behind the measure. Hastert's decision to send lawmakers home without a vote drew attacks from Democrats, and capped an unpredictable day in which prospects for enactment of the measure seemed to grow, then diminish, almost by the hour. He left open the possibility of summoning...

Giuliani describes 9/11 rescue efforts Giuliani: 'Could not conceive of the entire tower coming down' Wednesday, May 19, 2004 Posted: 1541 GMT (2341 HKT) NEW YORK (CNN) -- One day after former New York fire and police department officials drew criticism over communication problems that plagued rescue efforts during the World Trade Center attacks, the boss of both agencies has told the 9/11 commission Wednesday that the rescuers' performance demonstrated a "superb command structure." Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is speaking on the second of two days of public hearings at Manhattan's New School University looking at how the...

Christopher Brodeur (Rudy's Heckler) - His Letters to the EditorChristopher Brodeur is the jerk who heckled Rudy at the 9/11 O-Mission hearing today.  Here are some of his "letters to the editor" over the years -- and snippets of a few larger articles on the guy.  You will find these quite revealing.Newsday, February 12, 1993How can the City Council consider the proposed law that would permit police to confiscate bicycles if their owners are caught riding on a sidewalk ["City Targets Cyclists," Feb. 5]? It's completely unfair. The pedestrians, the motor vehicles and the bicyclists in New York City are...

Kean's remark sparked laughter among the assembled reporters because it turned upside down the assumption of the question, and of much of official Washington: that the White House requested the joint appearance, scheduled for April 29, so Cheney could coach Bush on his answers. While Bush has declined to explain the rationale for the joint meeting, Democrats charge that Cheney is a ''ventriloquist," and even a number of independent observers say it appears that the two men are trying to keep their stories straight.

'Ive already watched her all morning on TV,' said Gael Sandoval, a Royal Oak events planner, who said she admired the way Dr. Rice was holding up under the scrutiny of the September 11th Comission hearing.For women around the area, the surprising tug of Rice's testimony went largely unspoken and unreported -but you could watch it, see it, feel it.Women especially wanted to see how a woman-and in particular this very powerful one-would hold up to a barrage of carefully honed questions and international scrutiny. You could argue that you were watching the most powerful woman in the world. Whether...

During his private interview with the 9/11 Commission on Thursday, ex-President Bill Clinton denied that he told a New York business group in 2002 that he turned down an offer from Sudan for Osama bin Laden's extradition to the U.S., according to 9/11 Commissioner Bob Kerrey. "Bill Clinton said yesterday that, that was a misquote," Kerrey told WDAY Fargo, North Dakota radio host Scott Hennen, in an interview set for broadcast on Monday. A transcript of the exchange between Hennen and Kerrey was read on the air by national radio host Sean Hannity late Friday. It shows that the 9/11...

Mar 9, 11:58 AM (ET) By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Tuesday it was possible President Bush could be questioned longer than an hour he agreed to by a commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, an apparent concession that came after criticism from Democrat John Kerry. White House spokesman Scott McClellan, asked several times if Bush would stick to his insistence the session before the commission be restricted to one hour, said it was scheduled for an hour but that "the president of course is going to answer all the questions they want to raise." The...

The two key Senate authors of the bill that created an independent commission to investigate the Sept. 11 attacks said Thursday that they would introduce legislation next week to extend the panel's deadline by eight months, to next January. The senators, John McCain, Republican of Arizona, and Joseph I. Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, said they were prepared to fight for the extension over the opposition of the White House and Congressional Republicans. Both want the 10-member commission to meet its original deadline of May 27. "An extension until after the November elections is warranted to ensure a comprehensive and thorough...