“In January 2003, the CIA produced a paper that was the Agency’s definitive take on the [Iraq/al-Qaeda] matter, concluding that there was no Iraqi ‘authority, direction and control’ over al-Qaeda. Deputy Director of the CIA John McLaughlin recalls that this did not go down well with the Bush administration: ‘It took the form of phone calls from people on the vice president’s [Dick Cheney’s] staff, saying, *Here are another dozen questions we’d like you to look at,* at which point I’d have to say, *No, we’re turned over every rock we can on this, and, frankly, there will be a rebellion in this building if we go any further, because we’ve taken our stand on this.* Now, intelligence people always have to be alert to new information. So you’re arrogant if you say, *Nothing will ever change my view!* But at that point, we could see nothing that would change our view.’ “ [The 15th of the month used for date sorting purposes only.]
– Peter Bergen, The Longest War, Page 140