Has Everyone Forgot The Hart/Rudman Terrorism Report

[stewert]

This report was released on 1-31-01, that's 11 days after Bush took office. They
released it after a 2.5 year study that Clinton had put together. It proves Clinton
was acting on terrorism, and it backs up everything Richard Clarke is saying. Yet I
have not heard one mention of it in the so-called liberal media.

Here are some quotes from a 9-12-01 story on the report by Jake Tapper from salon.com:

September 12, 2001 | WASHINGTON -- They went to great pains not to sound as though they
were telling the president "We told you so."

But on Wednesday, two former senators, the bipartisan co-chairs of a Defense
Department-chartered commission on national security, spoke with something between
frustration and regret about how White House officials failed to embrace any of the
recommendations to prevent acts of domestic terrorism delivered earlier this year.

Bush administration officials told former Sens. Gary Hart, D-Colo., and Warren Rudman,
R-N.H., that they preferred instead to put aside the recommendations issued in the January
report by the U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century. Instead, the White House
announced in May that it would have Vice President Dick Cheney study the potential problem
of domestic terrorism -- which the bipartisan group had already spent two and a half years
studying -- while assigning responsibility for dealing with the issue to the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, headed by former Bush campaign manager Joe Allbaugh.

The Hart-Rudman Commission had specifically recommended that the issue of terrorism was
such a threat it needed far more than FEMA's attention.

Before the White House decided to go in its own direction, Congress seemed to be taking the
commission's suggestions seriously, according to Hart and Rudman. "Frankly, the White House
shut it down," Hart says. "The president said 'Please wait, we're going to turn this over to
the vice president. We believe FEMA is competent to coordinate this effort.' And so Congress
moved on to other things, like tax cuts and the issue of the day."

"We predicted it," Hart says of Tuesday's horrific events. "We said Americans will likely die on
American soil, possibly in large numbers -- that's a quote (from the commission's Phase One
Report) from the fall of 1999."

Full Story:

http://dir.salon.com/politics/feature/2001/09/12/bush/index.html

[leftchick]

1. Yeah and cheney put it on a shelf to gather dust...

I have been wondering if the commission has looked into this at all?

[RoBear]

2. Been wondering also...

nt

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. Not only did they defer national security to Cheney, but pre-9/11

Cheney's plan was to streamline everything through the Red Cross. I wonder why their dead-end ideas aren't discussed more openly. Saying that they had no plan in place yet because they were working on a comprehensive plan, is much kinder than the truth.

[maddezmom]

3. IIRC, it was brought up at the commission

maybe during Sandy Berger's testimony. If I have a chance I'll look for it.

[gristy]

4. Not me.

I remember it and "operation ignore" quite well.

[kentuck]

5. Thanks for bringing this up, stewert...

How can they be permitted to tear down Richard Clarke and not have this report and its trashing by the Bush White House added to the discussion? Dick Cheney was going to be in charge of anti-terrorism, yeah, sure...

[stewert]

6. This is an Outrage !

How come the media will not say one word about the hart/rudman report ?

This report is devastating to Bush, it shows they did nothing about terrorism
before the 9-11 attacks.

Who can we send this to, does anyone have e-mail addresses for 9-11 commission
members or the 9-11 famlies.

Post the url and or the e-mail addresses if you have them.

Should I go to unansweredquestions.org or what ?

This needs to get in the media, lets put together a list of people to e-mail about this.

How come Gary Hart and Warren Rudman are not on tv talking about their report, does
anyone have an e-mail address for gary hart ?

[kentuck]

7. It definitely needs to be in the public consciousness...

And I think Gary Hart and Warren Rudman should be requested to be on television to explain more thoroughly their report.

[stewert]

8. I Agree.......

I just sent an e-mail about it here:

mailto: [e-mail]

If anyone else knows of who to contact please post it. The info from the
hart rudman report needs to get into the media.

[Paradise]

11. kentuck, they should be brought before the 9/11 commission. n/t

[kentuck]

12. Makes sense...

Their testimony would seem appropriate for their investigation.

[Stephanie]

16. Carville hit on it on Crossfire yesterday

CARVILLE: Congressman King, Vice President Cheney, the president's No. 1 go-to guy was placed in charge of two task forces. One on energy and one on terrorism. Just guessing, which one do you think met more often, the one to give tax breaks to oil companies or the one to try to stop al Qaeda?

KING: The fact is when it comes to terrorism it was President Bush that met every day with the director of Central Intelligence who he kept on from the Clinton administration, which I think showed his interest in the issue and his bipartisanship.

Now listen, I could take a cheap shot by saying that Bill Clinton never met with his own CIA director. But he had a different way of doing things. President Bush did meet with George Tenet every day. If that doesn't show a commitment to countering terrorism, I don't know what does.

(CROSSTALK)

CARVILLE: Congressman, I asked a question. What met more, Dick Cheney's task force on tax breaks for the energy companies or the one on terrorism?

KING: James, that is a stupid question. The fact is...

CARVILLE: Why is it a stupid question? I don't understand why it's stupid.

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0403/25/cf.00.html

[Toucano]

19. How can they keep saying Tenet met with George everyday?

Was Tenet flying out to the ranch in Crawford every day when George was on vacation?

I might buy the statement that Dubya was briefed by Tenet everyday, but to say they met everyday is absurd. Didn't the RW nuts go crazy over Kerry saying he'd "met" with foreign leaders? They parsed the hell out of that statement.

We'd be wise to do the same with this one.

When exactly did these daily meetings start? Right after Bush was sworn in or after Tenet started hearing the chatter?

[Stephanie]

22. I think this is because unlike Clinton, bush was unable to read reports

So he had to have them spoonfed by Tenet. Just as he has the "news" fed to him by Condi. Bush can't READ.

[DeepModem Mom]

10. kick

[Sliverofhope]

13. kick

Apparently it has.

[stewert]

14. The Media is a Joke !

If we had a real media Hart and Rudman would be all over the place on tv and radio
talking about their report. And the media would have reported on the Hart/Rudman report.

The fact is they have not mentioned this report at all. When it is documented proof Bush
ignored terrorism before the 9-11 attacks. Powell also testified to the 9-11 commission
that the Clinton administration did not present a plan to them. Ummm, yes they did, it's
called the Hart/Rudman report. It is the plan Clinton had them put together, the 14 member
panel gave the report to them with 50 recommendations for fighting terrorism in January
of 2001. Yet Powell says they were not given a plan, yes they were, they just ignored it.

How come Hart and Rudman did not testify in public to the 9-11 commission ?

[Kimber Scott]

15. I sent the link to Crossfire

and requested they review the article. We'll see what happens.

[leftchick]

17. would love to see both hart and rudman on the sunday shows...

but the slots are all filled up with bush apologizers and repubs in dem clothing.... :(

[Gloria]

18. Did Gore have input on this one as well?

I know he was involved in a report on terrorism...

If so, it will come up when he testfies before the committee...I hope.

[Stephanie]

20. I think his was on airline safety

Not sure exactly - we should dig that up.

[Toucano]

21. Hart speaks out today. Defends Clarke.

Transcript:

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2004/s1074908.htm

Audio:

Windows: http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200403/r18185_44829.asx
RealAudio: http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200403/r18185_44827.ram

[Kimber Scott]

23. Excellent.

Kick

[Karenina]

24. Obviously.

:kick: