During his testimony before the 9/11 Commission on March 24, 2004, former counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke said: ” ‘[CIA director] George Tenet and I tried very hard to create a sense of urgency by seeing to it that intelligence reports on the al Qaeda threat were frequently given to the president [Bush] and other high-level […]
Category: quotes
3/24/2004
When testifying in front of the 9/11 Commission on March 24, 2004, former counterterrorism czar Richard Clarke was asked how much of a priority terrorism had been for the Clinton and Bush administrations. He replied: ” ‘My impression was that fighting terrorism in general, and fighting al Qaeda in particular, were an extraordinarily high priority […]
3/24/2004
Former counterterrorism czar Richard Clarke admitted in testimony on March 24, 2004 that “his [Clarke’s] policy advice, even if it had been accepted immediately and turned into action, would not have prevented 9/11.” – 9/11 Commission, The 9/11 Commission Report, Page 348 […]
3/24/2004
Former counterterrorism czar Richard Clarke testified before the 9/11 Commission on March 24, 2004. He said: ” ‘The reason I am strident in my criticism of the president of the United States [Bush] is that by invading Iraq, the president of the United States has greatly undermined the war on terrorism.’ ” – Jonathan Randal, […]
3/24/2004
CIA Director George Tenet defended the CIA in his testimony before the 9/11 Commission on March 24, 2004: ” ‘The idea that [the CIA’s clandestine officers] are risk-averse, couldn’t get the job done, weren’t forward-leaning–I’m sorry. I’ve heard those comments, and I just categorically reject them.’ ” – Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton, Without Precedent, […]
3/23/2004
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said, during her testimony before the 9/11 Commission on March 23, 2004: ” ‘I can say with confidence that President Clinton and his team did everything we could, everything that we could think of, based on the knowledge we had, to protect our people and disrupt and defeat al […]
3/23/2004
Secretary of State Colin Powell testified before of the 9/11 Commission on March 23, 2004: ” ‘From the start, the president [Bush], by word and deed, made clear his interests and his intense desire to protect the nation from terrorism.’ ” – Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton, Without Precedent, Page 159 […]
3/23/2004
In testimony before the 9/11 Commission on March 23, 2004, former Secretary of Defense William Cohen said, regarding sending a specialized force to pursue Bin Ladin: ” ‘We have 13,500 troops in Afghanistan right now, not to mention [how many] the Pakistanis [have there], and we can’t find Bin Ladin to date. So, the notion […]
3/23/2004
In testimony before the 9/11 Commission on March 23, 2004, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld gave his view that “even killing Bin Ladin before 9/11 might not have prevented the attacks, as the plot was already well in motion by 2001.” – Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton, Without Precedent, Page 161 […]
3/23/2004
In a 9/11 Commission hearing on March 23, 2004, Commission Member Bob Kerrey said to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld: ” ‘It seems to me that a declaration of war either by President Clinton or by President Bush, prior to 9/11 would have mobilized the government in a way that at least would have reduced […]