Reply #47: "...would have been successful to stop 9/11..." I don't think it's at all possible to prove that. [View All]

[cherokeeprogressive]

I'm curious though. When you say "Millennium attempt", are you referring to simply the plot to blow up LAX or do you include the plots in Jordan and on the "USS The Sullivans"? I ask because I have issues with one and all of your claims of what the Clinton administration stopped in 2000, and how.

If you're referring to the plot against LAX only, the reason Ahmed Ressam was arrested was because Customs inspector Dean thought he was acting "hinky". There were no intelligence reports suggesting that there was any kind of imminent threat coming from Canada and targeted at LAX. Attack thwarted because of a hunch. Scratch that as an intelligence success.

As far as the plot to blot up the USS The Sullivans goes, the terrorists actually had the boat laden with explosives on it's way to the naval ship when the overloaded boat sank. Richard Clarke in his own book says that no law enforcement agency in the world knew about this plot. The boat sank, and the attempt failed. But guess what? Only NINE MONTHS LATER the USS Cole was bombed in the very same port, using the very same means. So count this one out as well.

Lastly, as far as the planned bombings in Jordan goes, it was Jordanian intelligence that intercepted a call from Abu Zubaydah and determined it translated into a terror threat. So, unless you're going to give the Clinton administration credit for Jordanian intelligence successes, I have to scratch that also. This was the only incident that involved the "chatter" you referred to, and it wasn't US listening, it was the Jordanians. It wasn't US that arrested Zubaydah and the others, it was the Jordanians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_millennium_attack_plots

For the 9/11 mess, I blame over half a century of bad foreign policy crafted and enacted by republicans and Democrats alike. At various times, all three branches of government were controlled by our party, sometimes all three were. At no time did the foreign policy that caused this tragedy change. All of our politicians, R and D, over the last 60 years or more share in the blame.