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Terror Networks
Al Qaeda may have tried to kill Clinton
2002-02-04
  • Al Qaida may have tried to kill former President Clinton, apparently while he was in office, and perhaps planned further attempts on world leaders, United Press International has learned. Specific references to Clinton were found among handwritten notes and sketches of U.S. Secret Service protective methods recovered from the Shomali compound near Kabul where al Qaida members received specialized training in assassination and hostage taking. "We have attempted to kill Clinton, but failed," documents in Arabic obtained by UPI state. Although the text indicates the attack was planned around some high-level conference or international summit, it does not mention an exact date. Analysts in Kabul believe the attempt was planned about two years ago.
    One shudders to think what the response would have been from President Gore. I doubt it would have been anything like what we've seen from the Bush administration. Sandy Berger and Madaleine Albright leading a "war on terror"? That's nightmarish.
    This is more of a comment on the CIA than on al Qaeda, who we know are and were a bunch of rabid vermin. If the CIA was that out of the loop concerning active threats to the US President (of whatever competency) then they certainly had a real problem in focussing on what is important and what is of subordinate importance. This is something to consider in Intelligence community reform, as opposed to assigning historical blame. For all I've read, Clinton and even GWB were complacent about the CIA and the rest of the alphabet soup gaggle of intel agencies before 11 Sep 2001. Pointing fingers, except at the top, is useless now.
    Posted by Tom Roberts 2/4/2002 1:50:38 PM
    Unless the attempt was so inept it wasn't noticed. It may never have made it because it was shortstopped by routine precautions. I actually feel better about CIA now than I did directly after 9-11. Remember all those people who were telling us the Agency had no one on the ground, no one who spoke the languages, no one who knew what was going on? Seems like they found some.
    Posted by Fred 2/4/2002 2:08:47 PM
    These are big agencies: the CIA has a budget bigger than most civilian departments, so much of the "reform" needed is just reprioritizing internally. That is what has primarily happened, along with an official recognition that the products of the CIA are important and need to be looked at seriously. The issue that came up under Clinton and was only slowly being changed until 11 Sept was that the White House let wishful thinking get in the way of reality. Plots against the POTUS were not given serious scrutiny as they would be given today. Today they'd be used for their propaganda value along with taken seriously as a threat. But this is just a beginning. What needs closer scrutiny is a common understanding of what is needed in the future and who is going to get it onto the President's desk. Relying on terrorist ineptitude is what got us the 11 Sept attacks after fair warning was given by a prior failure in 1993.
    Posted by Tom Roberts 2/4/2002 2:41:41 PM
    • Posted by:Fred Pruitt

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