The Gamut

The Mahablog:

And wasn't the "Office of Homeland Security" supposed to fix the problem of miscommunication between the intelligence agencies? Whatever happened to that?

Maha makes a very good point here. If Homeland Security is already charged with overseeing all of the various agencies under their umbrella, what is the point of creating another conflicting (by definition) overseer? (Administration Considers a Post for National Intelligence Director)

Further, it's all just buying into the crap that there was a wall that prevented all forms of information sharing. Ashcroft went on and on in his testimony before the 9/11 commission about this supposed wall, and Insight Magazine posted a rail against former Deputy Attorney General and current commission member Jamie S. Gorelick for having written this memo. Their description of the memo is:

The Gorelick rules were meant to ensure that "no 'proactive' investigative efforts or technical coverages" of terrorist suspects be carried out on U.S. soil.

But the actual wording of the memo belies this criticism.

If, in the case of the FCI investigation, facts or circumstances are developed that reasonably indicate that a significant federal crime has been, is being, or may be commited, the FBI and OIPR are each responsible for notifying the USAO and the Criminal Division.

(Emphasis mine)

Acts of terrorism on American soil are a federal crime. So no, it's not a problem with the little guys being unable or unwilling to play nice. The problem is with the current administration. There was no wall-problem in 1999 when it came to intelligence gathering to interfere with the millennium plots. What was the main difference between 1999 and 2001?

Exactly.

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