Forget The FBI, What Was Bush Doing Before 9-11?

[Mark E. Smith]

"You never see Bush in the Oval Office. He's
always playing golf, or he's riding a horse in
Texas, or he's playing tennis. You know? I
can't tell if he's president or filming a feminine
hygiene commercial." - Jay Leno

This week's revelations regarding the FBI missing signs of the impending Al Qaeda terrorist attacks on 9-11 are interesting and all, but what about erstwhile President George W. Bush? We've now seen the CIA publicly roasted over intelligence failures leading up to the worst terrorist attacks in U.S. history, and we are now witnessing the administering of a similar beating to the FBI. But what about Bush? Here are some reasons why an investigation into his dereliction of duty leading up to 9-11 is long overdue:

White House To Move To Texas For A While
USA Today 8/3/01

WASHINGTON - Six months after taking office, President Bush will begin a month-long vacation Saturday that is significantly longer than the average American's annual getaway. If Bush returns as scheduled on Labor Day, he'll tie the modern record for presidential absence from the White House, held by Richard Nixon at 30 days. Ronald Reagan took trips as long as 28 days.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/august01/2001-08-03-bush-vacation.htm#more

A White House On The Range: Bush Retreats To Ranch For 'Working Vacation'
Washington Post 8/7/01

CRAWFORD, Tex. Aug 6 -- By the time President Bush returns to Washington on Labor Day after the longest presidential vacation in 32 years, he will have spent all or part of 54 days since the inauguration at his parched but beloved ranch. That's almost a quarter of his presidency.

Throw in four days last month at his parents' seaside estate in Kennebunkport, Maine, and 38 full or partial days at the presidential retreat at Camp David, and Bush will have spent 42% of his presidency at vacation spots or en route.
http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/timeline/2001/wpost080701.html

The Out-Of-Towner: While Bush Vacationed, 9/11 Warnings Went Unheard
Slate, 4/14/04

In an otherwise dry day of hearings before the 9/11 commission, one brief bit of dialog set off a sudden flash of clarity on the basic question of how our government let disaster happen.

The revelation came this morning, when CIA Director George Tenet was on the stand. Timothy Roemer, a former Democratic congressman, asked him when he first found out about the report from the FBI's Minnesota filed office that Zacarias Moussaoui, an Islamic jihadist, had been taking lessons on how to fly a 747. Tenet replied that he was briefed about the case on Aug. 23 or 24, 2001.

Roemer then asked Tenet if he mentioned Moussaoui to President Bush at one of their frequent morning briefings. Tenet replied, "I was not in briefings at this time." Bush, he noted, "was on vacation." He added that he didn't see the president at all in 2001. During the entire month, Bush was at his ranch in Texas. "You never talked with him?" Roemer asked. "No," Tenet replied. By the way, for much of August, tenet too was, as he put it, "on leave."

And there you have it. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice has made a big point of the fact that Tenet briefed the president nearly every day. Yet at the peak moment of threat, the two didn't talk at all. At a time when action was needed, and orders for action had to come from the top, the man at the top was resting undisturbed.
http://slate.msn.com/id/2098861/

A Working Vacation: Vice President Cheney plans to fish, travel during a month-long valley sojourn.
Jackson Hole News & Guide 8/15/01

Vice President Dick Cheney took time off from his month-long working vacation Monday to outline his plans for August in Jackson Hole and to reflect on "an amazing year."
http://www.jacksonholenews.com/Archives/NewsArchive/2001/010815-News.html

Bush Slept And 3,000 Died
Posted to Negative Spin 3/6/04

Regarding Bush's exploitation of the 9-11 terrorist attacks for political purposes, a letter in today's (3/6) New York Times pretty much sums it up for me:

"It continues to baffle me that the Republican Party insists on reminding the American people over and over again that George W. Bush's administration is responsible for the greatest security failure in the history of the United States.." - Seth Appel

An article printed in The Washington Post on 8/7/01 calculated Bush's vacation rate going into Labor Day of that year at a whopping 42%. Golfing with Poppy in Kennebunkport, trips to his vanity ranch in Crawford (including the entire month of August 2001), and lost weekends at Camp David, were all figured into the total.

In other words, we had a 'president' who was showing all the signs of not being truly engaged in performing the duties of the office awarded to him by the United States Supreme Court.

Unfortunately for those who died on 9-11, Osama bin Laden was not as concerned with his golf game that year as was the President of the United States.
http://www.negativespin.com/blog/archives/000426.html


The CIA has been investigated for its 9-11 failures, and now FBI is on the spot for failures of its own. That only leaves one party that has not seen its incompetence thoroughly investigated. The time to examine the failures of the Executive Branch and George W. Bush for dereliction of duty is long over due.

[leesa]

1. This is where they were putting the final touches on their 9-11 adventure.

The ranch was built to be bug-free where they can conduct their treason without worry.

[skooooo]

2. Well..one thing he did was to...

call off the hunt on bin Laden that the Clinton administration had planned and funded. I believe some vague reason like, the mission was "ill conceived" or some such BS. That's right, Bush CALLED OFF THE SEARCH. There is documentation for this. You might do a search in the archive.

[Old and In the Way]

3. Took the subs out of the Persian Gulf the Predator surveillance

aircraft, off station. That was one of his 1st executive actions. Also, they shitcanned the bi-partisan Hart-Rudman report that recommended changes to address the threat of terrorism.

One could conclude that they were facilitating the chances of a sucessful attack by their inordinate indifference to the gathering threat.

His dereliction of duty cost 3000 Americans their lives.

[Auntie Bush]

8. Bush* didn't follow the Clinton plan and did nothing because Cheney

claimed the plan wasn't good enough and he was going to write a more complete one. What an Asshole! Taking a vacation was more important than defending the country from terrorists. They knew we were about to be attacked and wanted to give the terrorists ample time to accomplish there mission. They were successful! Only successful thing he ever did...other than screw up this country and the economy.I could go on and on...but I don't have time/all day to list all his screw ups.

[Doctor_J]

4. Leno saw Smirk riding a horse?

was it a dime store ride when * was 5? The Cowboy Resident is deathly afraid of horses, and rides agolf cart around his pig farm, when he's sober enough for a photo-op. Leno's trying to help * be a cowboy he-man.

[KalicoKitty]

6. Bush is a fake little cowboy

just as he is a fake pResident who stole two elections.

[spooked911]

5. This is REALLY what Bush should be impeached for

[paulthompson]

7. One of my 9/11 timeline entries

After August 6, 2001
"Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US Memo Is Not Acted Upon"
The 9/11 Commission will later state that after the now famous "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in US" memo is given to President Bush on August 6, 2001, "We have found no indication of any further discussion before September 11 among the President and his top advisers of the possibility of a threat of an al-Qaeda attack in the United States." (Newsweek, 4/28/05)

[Al-CIAda]

9. And yet NOW we KNOW there were at least 52 such warnings.

Thank you for all of your hard work.

[Mark E. Smith]

11. Thanks

Wasn't all that hard, though. http://www.cooperativeresearch.org has some amazing stuff. What I put here just barely breaks the surface. This guy apparently thought being president didn't involve him having to behave in anything approaching a responsible manner. Lifetime habit I guess.

Then 3,000 people were killed due in part to his gross negligence and indifference. Something his handlers exploited as a political opportunity.

[leveymg]

10. Shrub had lots of chats w/Tenet while on "vacation"

UQ Wire: Tenet Lied Under Oath To 9/11 Commission
Wednesday, 9 June 2004, 1:37 pm
Press Release: www.UnansweredQuestions.org

Distribution via the Unanswered Questions Wire
Sign up for the wire at:
http://www.unansweredquestions.org/headlines.php
Unanswered Questions : Thinking for ourselves.
NEWS RELEASE ----- NEWS RELEASE ----- NEWS RELEASE ----
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0406/S00098.htm

TENET LIED UNDER OATH TO 9/11 COMMISSION ABOUT 8/24/01 MEETING WITH PRESIDENT - AGENCY COMPOUNDS MISREPRESENTATION

* CIA Statement Omits Key Date From List of Bush-DCI Meetings in Weeks Before 9/11
* What Did Bush, Tenet, Rumsfeld and Gen. Myers Talk About in Crawford, TX Three Weeks Before the Attacks - One Day After the Flt. 77 Hijackers Were Watchlisted by the CIA?
From Mark G. Levy
Washington, DC, June 7, 2004 - Former CIA Director George Tenet committed perjury in his April 14 testimony before the 9/11 Commission when he claimed he had not met with President Bush in the month before the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. That misrepresentation in Tenet's testimony was noted within hours by Agence France-Presse.

The following day, AP reported the CIA issued what was
<SNIP>

[laugle]

12. Why do you think he is still talking about social security,

even though it is a dead issue. They have to give him something to do!!!! Either that or he is on vacation. He spends alot of time at the ranch, maybe he is on a binge!!! We all know he is a total fraud!!!!