Countdown Debunked the NYT Atta Able Danger Story from Monday

[RamboLiberal]

On Tuesday Terrorism Expert Eric Kohlmann Debunked this and Curt Weldon. I couldn't believe so many DU'ers were taking this report seriously.

OLBERMANN: Let‘s begin with “The Times”‘ report.

Between the dubious, nebulous sourcing, the fact that the 9/11 Commission says it looked into this program and didn‘t find anything, and that the story has been around for a couple months, but no news organization really had been willing to touch it until today, is there reason to be skeptical about this account in “The New York Times”?

KOHLMANN: Well, even if we were sure this account was actually true, it doesn‘t tell us anything really that earth-shattering. While we didn‘t know necessarily about any involvement or knowledge by U.S. agencies of Mohamed Atta‘s presence here in the U.S., we know that the CIA knew at least about two of the individuals mentioned here, Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaq al-Hamzi, before 9/11.

So, if the issue is whether or not U.S. government agencies knew about 9/11 hijackers as potential al Qaeda terrorists here in the U.S. before 9/11, we already knew the answer was yes. And the larger issue, of course, is, any time you have a story like this, you have to go back to the source. And the only named source is Representative Curt Weldon.

And, with all due respect, Representative Weldon does not have a particularly good history in terms of reporting information about terrorism. His latest book, which accuses Iran of being behind virtually everything terrorism-related since the World Trade Center bombing, is based upon material that is absolute propaganda and is 100 percent wrong. It is based upon sources that we relied upon for the Iran-Contra affair that have been discredited over a decade ago.

And I think, really, the most telling comment was from a CIA official, who took the unprecedented step, really, of coming out and directly saying that he had reviewed the accusations that Mr. Weldon made in his book and determined that they were not worth his time, that they were a waste of his time. And, unfortunately, I‘m concerned that this report may again be a waste of our time, the time of the American public, the time of 9/11 Commission investigators, and the time of FBI and CIA agents.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8895001/

[BOSSHOG]

1. But weldon did his job as a good foot soldier

The story will live forever in conservative circles. Once again, its all Clinton's fault. 45 years ago, conservatives had Clinton up a tree in Fayetteville, Arkansas protesting Nixon and the Vietnam war during a Texas-Arkansas Football game. Except, Clinton was at Cambridge, England at the time doing his Rhodes Scholar stuff. Damn the facts.

Besides Mcveigh and Rudolph were in this country legally!

[RamboLiberal]

2. I disappointed so many DU'ers and other liberals swallowed

this crap!

[BOSSHOG]

4. Their Propaganda Machine is intense

and they know their targeted audience. If a few honest to goodness Americans get caught up in their mendacity all the better. However, they can be rescued, the lemmings are already over the cliff and just as an aside curt weldon is scum.

[Norquist Nemesis]

5. I swallowed it

But only in the way that it points the finger squarely at Bush etal. If true, one can not reasonable believe that this highly classified information was not covered during transition from Clinton to Bush.

Bush knew and did nothing. There's no way around it.

[ScrappyDem]

6. maybe loosen the straps on the tin foil helmets

Glad someone else noticed the hook line and sinker that went through here yeaterday.

[wli]

9. I thought it was a trial balloon the whole time

[xray s]

3. The flying monkey right obsession with the Clenis continues

All Clenis, all the time.

[LSparkle]

7. Glad Keith's doing good work -- I hear Rick Kaplan is mad at him

Per HuffPo, Kaplan was pissed at Keith mentioning his personal brush with lung cancer and said "I don't care if you come to work tomorrow." He SHOULD care, as long as Keith is breaking stories like this. So help me, if MSNBC makes "Countdown" another "Donohue," I'm cancelling my cable subscription.

[Lex]

8. Yes, that segment on MSNBC last night was compelling.

Weldon was completely de-bunked.

[cthrumatrix]

10. this is why they don't want Keith on MSNBC