Reply #25: And let's not forget Louis Freeh

[chookie]

Freeh took the threat of terror strike in the US deadly seriously. Under Clinton's administration, he undertook major counter-terror programs.

It is said that he could not tolerate the lack of interest that the Bush administration had in counter-terrorism measures. Ashcroft gutted much of the spending on counter-terrorism when he became AG. It is said that Freeh and Ashcroft could be heard screaming at each other and pounding on the table while in private meetings. Eventually he resigned. Didn't want the blood on his hands, I guess.

I don't know what Tenet did that day -- it will be most illuminating to find out.

Gary Hart has said that when he heard the news, he screamed -- "Oh my God -- this is what I said was going to happen!" HOW could anyone be taken by surprise, knowing what they did know, even if it was not exactly precise?

Were they all thinking '' Ooops! This must have been the sort of thing they were warning us about!" But instead of confronting it head-on -- they immediately went into denial and cover-up mode. Within a day or so, we went from responding to attacks themselves to implementing the plan that had been written up years before....

Or were they thinking -- "gee, we didn't think it was going to be *this* awful. Maybe we overdid it...."

Or, -- "Mohammed -- Atta-Boy!"