Negroponte: Iraq NIE Coming "First Thing Next Week"

[cynatnite]

That long awaitied National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq is finally coming Monday, according to outgoing Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte.

He made the remark during this morning's hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The NIE, requested last July by Democrats, has been a long time coming. The situation came to a head a couple of weeks ago when an administration official reportedly explained in a closed door session of the Senate Judiciary Committee that intelligence officials were just too busy getting the plans together for President Bush's escalation of troops in Iraq to finish up the NIE.

Outraged, Democrats demanded that Negroponte finish up the estimate, which, they argued, should have been completed before Bush's announcement of a new strategy in Iraq, and not after.

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002435.php

[spanone]

1. They need to hold these bastards in contempt of Congress.

[Nickster]

2. Isn't it amazing that the politics came first THEN the intelligence that should have been used to

make those policy decisions? Wouldn't you want an NIE first and then plan the military strategy? Maybe I'm just crazy, plans schmlans.

[cynatnite]

3. Stop making sense...

it makes my brain hurt :smoke:

[Poiuyt]

4. Can the NIE be influenced or swayed by political pressure?

You wouldn't think so, but there's another report out today about the number of scientists who have been pressured to change their scientific findings about global warming.

[cynatnite]

6. The last NIE said we were less safe because of the Iraq war...

so, I'd say no. :)

[frylock]

5. check is in the mail