White House owns up to errors in terror report

[underpants]

http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1086445590079

Published: June 11 2004 5:00 | Last Updated: June 11 2004 5:00

The Bush administration yesterday admitted it had got its facts, figures and analysis wrong in its annual report on counter-terrorism, which had been hailed as evidence of a policy triumph based on claims that the number of terrorist attacks worldwide had declined in 2003.


Retracting the "Patterns of Global Terrorism" report released in late April, Richard Boucher, State Department spokesman, said a revised version would show the opposite - "a sharp increase" in both the number of attacks and deaths over 2002.

The report was compiled by the State Department, based on data supplied by the CIA, the FBI, and the departments of defence and homeland security. Mr Boucher told a news conference that data were incomplete and incorrect, wrong classifications and definitions were used, and the department had failed to make thorough checks or verify the conclusions.

Questions over the validity of the report arose soon after it was published. Henry Waxman, a senior Democrat on the House government reform committee, called the report "deplorable" in a letter to Mr Powell. Inconsistencies in terminology used by the administration surfaced at the time of publication. US officials often referred to Iraqi insurgents as "terrorists", but for the purposes of the report, attacks on forces in Iraq were classified as combat.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

1. That's what they do man

Print the scare or WMD discovery on page 1 so everyone believes it, then print the retraction on page 10 so no one reads it. It's the misinformation game.

[kevinhnc]

5. I thought the exact same thing when I found this story on page 10A

of the AJC today. Absolutely infuriating. Bush still has >50% approval on his handling on terrorism, and the sole reason is this kind of intentional misinformation.

<bursts blood vessel>

[tabasco]

2. Waxman caught them LYING again.

When do the impeachment proceedings begin? Lying about consensual sex was grounds for impeachment according to the repugs. I suppose lying about national security is OK with them though.

[Wwagsthedog]

3. Way back whenever, I used to believe some of our government's pap.

Now, everything I hear or see that has a government source is regarded as some kind of lie or misinformation. Topics about terrorism, jobs, GDP, environment, etc., are all lies, all prevarication, all the time. Some people might believe the garbage that comes out of Washington or where ever but they have to be purposely uninformed. What a sorry state of affairs.

[yellowcanine]

4. Only problem - it is the State Dept. - not the WH that is "fessing up".

Once again, the buck goes nowhere near the Oval Office desk, let alone stopping there.

[Moderator]

6. Duplicate topic, please add your link and discuss here, thanks

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=611855