Analysts say US threat warning is back-covering - Political ploy

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N269710.htm

WASHINGTON, May 26 (Reuters) - A vague new U.S. warning that al Qaeda may be planning a massive attack smacks of political back-covering and campaigning, not just a call for heightened vigilance, analysts and former government officials say.

Stung by accusations that the Bush administration ignored key intelligence in the run-up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, officials may now be issuing warnings to prove to Americans they are on the ball this time, say terrorism analysts on both sides of the political fence. snip

Some critical voices say the government may also be hoping the warnings could score political points on national security that could boost President George W. Bush's flagging popularity ahead of the November elections. snip

"The president is running as a war president, so the timing is interesting," he said, pointing to a speech by Bush on Monday that made frequent references to terrorist threats.

"I wonder if there's not a connection to the president's speech when he mentioned terrorism 18 times in the context of Iraq. Isn't this a very convenient way of linking back to the United States that Iraq is part of the broader war on terrorism?" he said.

more

[Maeve]

1. Don't say that! Jeez...

Now they'll just have to LIHOP to prove there really was a threat. :tinfoilhat:

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. when this hits the press

you know bush boy is in trouble

[Terran]

13. Right...I would not have dreamed this a year ago

that the press would actually look at Bush's actions for some underlying cynical motivation. The really are awake now.

[Hobarticus]

3. Unless something actually happens...

Then it won't make a damn bit of difference how many warnings they gave; they'll still be viewed as asleep at the wheel.

S'okay, invading Iraq=defending America. Rinse, lather, repeat.

[Jazzgirl]

4. Interesting as I thought the same thing about the warnings today.

I just read on Reuters that Asscroft and Mueller were doing a press conference today and talking about these "potential attacks" especially close to the election by al Qaeda. Of course they're saying AQ wants the US to react the same way Spain did. With Tom Ridge getting out this morning beating the turf about "turrism" I guess they want us all to shiver in fear and keep the shrub around for 4 more. :puke:

[oldhat]

5. Submit this to Drudge!

Copy and paste the headline and the first two paragraphs and the link and put it into the submit box on the right hand side of the page!

Seriously, I've had Drudge post stories this way!

[gbwarming]

6. scathing NPR Commentary by Dan Schorr: Terror War as Political Hay

Commentary: Terror War as Political Hay

Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr says that recent warnings about domestic terror attacks may be a political boon for President George Bush. According to new polls, the president leads Sen. John Kerry when it comes to his handling the war on terror.
(the actual audio is much more pointed than this blurb)

http://www.npr.org/rundowns/rundown.php?prgDate=26-May-2004&prgId=2

[lancdem]

11. But his lead is dropping in that area

This is probably an effort to pump it up.

[gbwarming]

12. Yeah, that was Schorr's implication.

other Schorr points:
Ashcroft and Mueller added _drama_ to their presentation by showing pictures.

This warning contradicts administration claims that the center of the WOT is in IRAQ

[maddezmom]

7. back-covering, LOL

wouldn't it be great to see the headline, "bush* misadministration covering their asses again with another terrayist alert"

[Beaverhausen]

8. rate it on yahoo

http://news.yahoo.com/fc?tmpl=fc&cid=34&in=us&cat=terrorism

[maddezmom]

10. done, and here's the direct link to rate

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040526/pl_nm/security_threat_politics_dc_1

[catzies]

21. Done. Only a 3.38 with 422 votes though.

9:30 PDT.

[Cronus Protagonist]

23. Here's a direct link - keep rating it

Seems to have moved... keep rating it...

Yahoo News Article Direct Link

[West Coast Democrat]

9. I couldn't believe this was a top Yahoo headline

Whoa!!

[Just Me]

14. Oh,...this is so lovely.

Too bad they caught on like,...18 months behind.

Unfortunately, their timing likely sucks because,...we are in far, far greater danger now of actually experiencing some kind of terrorist hit than we were way back when the media should have been on top of this shit.

[Manix]

15. ...everytime the polls go down, the terror alert goes up...count on it!!

[Generator]

16. Hell yes it's political

they couldn't find a terrorist if he had a sign with "terrorist here" pinned on him.

A) Covering their ass in case anything ever happens

B) Instilling fear by proxy, hey that war in Iraq IS about terror.

Oh, so clever, Georgie & the boys. NOT.

Wake up and smell the deceit.

[abburdlen]

17. Anything to control the headlines

The administration first tried Monday's "Important Speech" (read nothing new) about our plans to get out of Iraq; not surprisingly that fell flat.
Next was the Global Threat Reduction Initiative, a great plan for really lessening the thread of terrorist getting their hands on WMD. That story was DOA it seems because the right-wing biased media would have had to point out the plan was started during Clinton's watch.
So now we have a new terrorist warning. Color us not surprised. Now the story may be how the alerts are politicly driven.
What will the whitehouse do to get ahead of a story?

My guess is the will be so desarate to change the story from the Iraq that by Monday well start hearing something big about the Wilson/CIA leak.

[librechik]

18. They did the same thing last summer

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of these liars calling wolf whenever they get some heat.

[dArKeR]

19. Kerry rips ‘photo op’ homeland security - MSGOP

SEATTLE - Democrat John Kerry on Wednesday called on the Bush administration to do more than just warn about the threat of terrorist attacks and provide communities with enough money to protect potential targets.

“We deserve a president of the United States who doesn’t make homeland security a photo opportunity and the rhetoric of a campaign,” Kerry said as Attorney General John Ashcroft warned that the latest intelligence showed that al-Qaida is planning another attack in the United States. “We deserve a president who makes America safer.”

“The key word that we need to focus on is the word when,” said the presidential candidate. “When, possibly? ... And if it’s a question of when, then my question and the question of most Americans is: Why are we cutting COPS programs in the United States of America?”

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5067950/

[maddezmom]

24. thanks for the link

another area where Kerry kicks ass.

[koopie57]

20. how can this be good for bush?

if something happens, people will be upset cuz they knew something was up but were not able to figure it out; if nothing happens, it sure looks like they were terrorizing us on purpose. Doesn't it?

[moondust]

22. "Political innoculation."

As per a guest on Keith Olberman.

[maddezmom]

25. NYT- As Ashcroft Warns of Qaeda Attack, Some Question Threat and Its Timin

~snip~
But some intelligence officials, terrorism experts - and to some extent even Mr. Ashcroft's own F.B.I. director, Robert S. Mueller III - offered a more tempered assessment, saying, "For the next few weeks we have reason to believe there is a heightened threat to the U.S. interests around the world.'' And some opponents of President Bush, including police and firefighter union leaders aligned with Senator John Kerry, the expected Democratic presidential candidate, said the timing of the announcement appeared intended in part to distract attention from Mr. Bush's sagging poll numbers and problems in Iraq.

The administration did not raise the terrorist threat advisory from its current level of elevated, or yellow, and the White House said Mr. Bush would not alter his schedule because of security concerns.

"There's no real new intelligence, and a lot of this has been out there already," said one administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "There really is no significant change that would require us to change the alert level of the country."

~snip~

Some intelligence officials said they were uncertain that the link between the fresh intelligence and the likelihood of another attack was as apparent as Mr. Ashcroft made it out to be. Officials at the Department of Homeland Security said just a day before Mr. Ashcroft's announcement that they had no new intelligence pointing to the threat of an attack.


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/27/politics/27terror.html

[dusty64]

26. This is ALL true, but

also to distract the public and get ALL the negative stories off the front pages and airways. Sadly it seems to work everytime.