Operation Ignore ~ from Franken's book

[Bandit]

"Clinton's National Security Advisor Sandy Berger remembered how little help the previous Bush administration had provided to his team. Believing that the nation's security should transcend political bitterness, Berger arranged ten briefings for his successor, Condoleezza Rice, and her deputy, Stephen Hadley. Berger made a special point of attending the briefing on terrorism. He told Dr. Rice, “I believe that the Bush administration will spend more time on terrorism in general, and on al Qaeda specifically, than any other subject.''

"Which brings me to a lie. When Time asked about the conversation, Rice declined to comment, but through a spokeswoman said she recalled no briefing at which Berger was present" Perhaps so, Dr. Rice. But might I direct our mutual friends, my readers, to a certain December 30, 2001, New York Times article? Perhaps you know the one, Condi? Shall I quote it? "As he prepared to leave office last January, Mr. Berger met with his successor, Condoleezza Rice, and gave her a warning. According to both of them, he said that terrorism-and particularly Mr. bin Laden's brand of it-would consume far more of her time than she had ever imagined.''

After Berger left, Rice stayed around to listen to counterterrorism bulldog Richard Clarke, who laid out the whole anti-al Qaeda plan. Rice was so impressed with Clarke that she immediately asked him to stay on as head of counterterrorism. In early February, Clarke repeated the briefing for Vice President Dick Cheney. But, according to Time, there was some question about how seriously the Bush team took Clarke's warnings. Outgoing Clinton officials felt that "the Bush team thought the Clintonites had become obsessed with terrorism."

"The Bushies had an entirely different set of obsessions. Missile defense, for example. The missile defense obsession proved prescient when terrorists fired a slow-moving intercontinental ballistic missile into the World Trade Center. If only Clarke had put his focus on missile defense instead of obsessing on Osama bin Laden.

<snip>

"Meanwhile, on February 15, 2001, a commission led by former senators Gary Hart and Warren Rudman issued its third and final report on national security. The Hart-Rudman report warned that "mass-casualty terrorism directed against the U.S. homeland was of serious and growing concern'' and said that America was woefully unprepared for a "catastrophic'' domestic terrorist attack and urged the creation of a new federal agency: "A National Homeland Security Agency with responsibility for planning, coordinating, and integrating various U.S. government activities involved in homeland security” that would include the Customs Service, the Border Patrol, the Coast Guard, and more than a dozen other government departments and agencies.

"The Hart-Rudman Commission had studied every aspect of national security over a period of years and had come to a unanimous conclusion: "This commission believes that the security of the American homeland from the threats of the new century should be the primary national security mission of the U.S. government."

<snip>

"Bush spent 42 percent of his first seven months in office either at Camp David, at the Bush compound in Kennebunkport, or at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. As he told a $1,000-a-plate crowd at a fund-raiser in June, Washington, D.C., is a great place to work, but Texas is a great place to relax." That's why on August 3, after signing off on a plan to cut funding for programs guarding unsecured or "loose” nukes in the former Soviet Union, he bade farewell to the Washington grind and headed to Crawford for the longest presidential vacation in thirty-two years.

from Operation: Ignore <http://www.avatara.com/operationignore0.html>

[gristy]

1. This is a very important chapter in his book.

Infuriating, in fact.

[markus]

2. All American should read this chapter before they vote

Hell, if Franken wants to do his country a service, he would allow the chapter, or a disgest of it, to be printed and distributed as little or no cost, and published on the Internet.

I think, in fact, the entire Operation Ignore is the perfect anecdote to the Bush reliance on Ground Zero in his ads. I can think of a perfectly ghastly and effective ad titled "They Should Have Known", featuring bullets of into on this subject, and utilizing videos of African embassies, the Cole, the planes striking the tower and one of those stricking shots of people fleeing in terror from the collapsing building.

If they're going to do down this path, I say hit Bush back double.

I don't think this could be a Kerry ad. I think it would be better if it came from the DNC or MoveOn.org.

On edit: removed metaphorical reference to giving certain people "both barrels", since an understanding of metaphor and irony is not a requirement for employement in the U.S. security services.

[SemperEadem]

3. gems

"If they're going to do down this path, I say hit Bush with both barrels, and then turn it around and beat him with the stock."

love it!!!!!!

[seabeyond]

4. seems to me is what we are saying

ok bush so this is why you should be re elected. so lets look at 9/11 and really see if you should

good focus here, lol

i like