John R. Carroll wrote:
"Gunner Asch" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 19 May 2009 12:10:35 -0700 (PDT), Brian R
wrote:

While the authors of this e-mail are entitled to biased opinions, I
don't find honest apologies to Europeans for the hostile and vastly
unpopular unilateral policies of the Bush administration appeasing.

Fascinating. Looks like that bit was from a Leftard. Was the entire
missive from a Leftard?

Im curious how Bush's dealings with Europe were different than
Clintons...etc etc.

Please advise

Clinton didn't get 3,000 American civilians slaughtered in New York near the
end of his first year in office.


Do you think we would have had the second WTC bombing if Clinton had
done something useful after the first?

Bush/Cheney did.

C'mon, B/C had been in office 8 months on 9/11/01 and had not yet had
much chance to screw up international relations. WTC II would have
happened regardless of who won in '00, the plan stared long before the
election.

David

"David R.Birch" wrote in message
...
John R. Carroll wrote:
"Gunner Asch" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 19 May 2009 12:10:35 -0700 (PDT), Brian R
wrote:

While the authors of this e-mail are entitled to biased opinions, I
don't find honest apologies to Europeans for the hostile and vastly
unpopular unilateral policies of the Bush administration appeasing.

Fascinating. Looks like that bit was from a Leftard. Was the entire
missive from a Leftard?

Im curious how Bush's dealings with Europe were different than
Clintons...etc etc.

Please advise

Clinton didn't get 3,000 American civilians slaughtered in New York near
the end of his first year in office.


Do you think we would have had the second WTC bombing if Clinton had done
something useful after the first?

Bush/Cheney did.

C'mon, B/C had been in office 8 months on 9/11/01 and had not yet had much
chance to screw up international relations.

They were very busy little beavers David.

EARLY 2001 - WHITE HOUSE DEPARTS FROM EFFORTS TO TRACK TERRORIST
MONEY: The new Bush Treasury Department "disapproved of the Clinton
Administration's approach to money laundering issues, which had been an
important part of the drive to cut off the money flow to bin Laden."
Specifically, the Bush Administration opposed Clinton
Administration-backed efforts by the G-7 and the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development that targeted countries with
"loose banking regulations" being abused by terrorist financiers.
Meanwhile, the Bush Administration provided "no funding for the new
National Terrorist Asset Tracking Center." [Source: The Age of Sacred
Terror, 2003]

APRIL 30, 2001 - BUSH ADMINISTRATION SAYS BIN LADEN FOCUS WAS
"MISTAKE": The Bush Administration released the government's annual
report on terrorism, but unlike previous Administrations, it decided to
specifically omit an "extensive mention of alleged terrorist mastermind
Osama bin Laden. A senior State Department official told CNN the U.S.
government made a mistake in focusing so much energy on bin Laden."
Similarly, AP reported in 2002 that the Bush Administration's "national
security leadership met formally nearly 100 times in the months prior
to the Sept. 11 attacks yet terrorism was the topic during only two of
those sessions." [Source: CNN, 4/30/01; AP, 6/29/01]


The federal government was rapidly increasing its counter-terrorism
efforts at the time President Bush took office. As the New York Times
reported, Attorney General Janet Reno ended her tenure as "perhaps the
strongest advocate" of counterterrorism spending. Similarly, Newsweek
and the Washington Post reported National Security Adviser Sandy Berger
was "totally preoccupied" with the prospect of a domestic terror
attack, telling his replacement that they need to be "spending more
time on this issue" than on any other. The focus changed dramatically
when the Bush Administration took office.


ADMINISTRATION SHIFTED LAW ENFORCEMENT'S FOCUS OFF OF
COUNTER-TERRORISM: The New York Times reported that in the lead-up to
9/11, Attorney General John Ashcroft "said fighting terrorism was a top
priority of his agency," yet upon entering office, "he identified more
than a dozen other objectives for greater emphasis within the Justice
Department before the attacks." On Aug. 9, the Administration
distributed a strategic plan to the Justice Department highlighting its
new goals from a list of Clinton Administration goals. The item that
referred to intelligence and investigation of terrorists was left
un-highlighted. [Source: NY Times, 2/28/02]


ASHCROFT OVERRULED EFFORTS FOCUSED ON COUNTER-TERROR: Newsweek reported
that "in the spring of 2001, the attorney general had an extraordinary
confrontation with the then FBI Director Louis Freeh at an annual
meeting of special agents." The two talked before appearing, and
Ashcroft laid out his priorities for Freeh: "basically violent crime
and drugs," recalls one participant. Freeh replied bluntly that those
were not his priorities, and began to talk about terror and
counterterrorism. "Ashcroft didn't want to hear about it," says a
former senior law-enforcement official." [Source: Newsweek, 5/27/02]


BUSH ADMINISTRATION TERMINATED PROGRAM THAT TRACKED AL QAEDA: "In the
months before 9/11, the U.S. Justice Department curtailed a highly
classified program called 'Catcher's Mitt' to monitor Al Qaeda suspects
in the United States." [Source: Newsweek, 3/21/04]


SO LITTLE CONCERN FOR COUNTER-TERROR THAT A WHITE HOUSE TASK FORCE
NEVER MET: In January of 2001, the U.S. Government's bipartisan
Commission on National Security gave the White House a report that
warned of an attack on the homeland and urged the new Administration to
implement its specific "recommendations to prevent acts of domestic
terrorism. The Administration rejected the Commission's report,
"preferring to put aside the recommendations." Instead, the
Administration waited until May of 2001 to appoint Vice President
Cheney to head a task force "to combat terrorist attacks on the United
States." But according to the Washington Post, neither "Cheney's review
nor Bush's took place." Meanwhile, Newsweek reported that when senators
"sent a copy of draft legislation on counterterrorism and homeland
defense to Cheney's office on July 20," they were told by Cheney's top
aide "that it might be another six months before he would be able to
review the material." [Source: Salon, 9/12/04; White House release,
5/8/01; Washington Post, 1/20/02; Newsweek, 5/27/02]


WHITE HOUSE BEGAN EFFORT TO CUT COUNTER-TERRORISM PROGRAMS: The New
York Times reported that in its final 2003 budget request, the
Administration "called for spending increases in 68 programs, none of
which directly involved counterterrorism...In his Sept. 10 submission
to the budget office, Ashcroft did not endorse FBI requests for $58
million for 149 new counterterrorism field agents, 200 intelligence
analysts and 54 additional translators. Ashcroft proposed a $65 million
cut for a program that gives states and localities counterterrorism
grants for equipment, including radios and decontamination suits and
training." By comparison, "Under Janet Reno, the department's
counterterrorism budget increased 13.6% in the fiscal year 1999, 7.1%
in 2000 and 22.7% in 2001." [Source: NY Times, 2/28/02]


ADMINISTRATION LEFT "GAPS" IN MILITARY'S REQUEST FOR COUNTER-TERROR
FUNDS: The Washington Post reported that in its first budget, the White
House left "gaps" between "what military commanders said they needed to
combat terrorists and what they got." Newsweek noted that, among other
things, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld elected not to re-launch a
Predator drone that had been tracking bin Laden. When the Senate Armed
Services Committee tried to fill those gaps, "Rumsfeld said he would
recommend a veto" on September 9. [Source: Washington Post, 1/20/02;
Newsweek, 5/27/02; NY Times, 2/28/02]


ADMINISTRATION STOPPED PREDATOR FLIGHTS TRACKING AL QAEDA IN
AFGHANISTAN: AP reported "though Predator drones spotted Osama bin
Laden as many as three times in late 2000, the Bush administration did
not fly the unmanned planes over Afghanistan during its first eight
months." Additionally, "the military successfully tested an armed
Predator throughout the first half of 2001" but the White House "failed
to resolve a debate over whether the CIA or Pentagon should operate the
armed Predators" and the armed Predator never got off the ground before
9/11. [Source: AP, 6/25/03]


JC