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| Gen. Anthony Zinni: USS Cole Blunder Is My Fault |
| 2006-04-19 |
| Former CENTCOM Commander, Gen. Anthony Zinni - who has called for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to resign because of Rumsfeld's alleged incompetence in running the Iraq war - admitted six years ago that he made the disastrous decision to have the USS Cole use the port of Aden, Yemen for refueling, where the ship was blown up by al-Qaida terrorists. Worse still, at least one report indicates that Gen. Zinni may have played a role in an August 1998 leak that tipped off Osama bin Laden to an impending U.S. cruise missile attack - allowing the top terrorist to escape. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee in October 2000, a week after the Cole attack, the then-recently retired Zinni said: "I pass that buck on to nobody." The Rumsfeld critic explained that he personally signed off on berthing the Cole in Yemen even though "their coast is a sieve for terrorists." "The threat conditions in Aden were better than elsewhere," he insisted, citing risk assessments for Sudan and Saudi Arabia. Gen. Zinni said that cutbacks in the size of the Navy's fleet during the Clinton years made it necessary to use regional ports for refueling, noting: "Ten years ago, we did all refueling at sea" using Navy oilers. Still, prior to the Cole attack, there's no record that Gen. Zinni ever complained about Clinton era defense cuts. In what may be an even more troubling development, a report indicates that the leading Rumsfeld critic may have inadvertently played a role in tipping off Osama bin Laden to an impending U.S. cruise missile attack two years before the Cole episode. Two days after President Clinton ordered the attack on bin Laden's encampment in Khost Afghanistan, the Associated Press reported: "Kuwait's Al-Watan newspaper, quoting unidentified sources in London today, reported that Pakistan leaked to bin Laden news about an impending U.S. strike. The sources said the leak was aimed at limiting casualties, so that bin Laden would have less justification for a counterattack. "A Pakistani government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Gen. Anthony Zinni, commander of the U.S. Central Command, was in Peshawar the day before the attack to meet with Pakistani officials. "Other Pakistani sources said Zinni came with a team of U.S. intelligence experts whose task was to pinpoint the camps and determine bin Laden's exact whereabouts." |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #18 Hillary is here to the end, until she gets her eight years of being POTUS, andor as Senator America is undeniably on the path to unchallenged pro forma national Socialism and Socialist OWG. She and the anti-American Lefts have given America up to 2015-2020, while Russia-China both indic that 2015-2018 war againt the USA and only the USA is not only possible but desired, WHICH OF COURSE IS ONLY A WEIRD AND MYSTERIOUS COINCIDENCE!? Marxism-Leninism says the GLOBAL Proletarian/Communist Revolution will come or devolve from Capitalism and the Right - now you know why a major reason why the Clintonoid pre 9-11, and post 9-11, RINO CINO agenda-less Lefties are such vv IRAN = NORTH KOREA = TAIWAN, etal, and why the criticisms of Dubya are so vile and hate-filled. THE DEMOLEFTIES WANT WAR, CIVIL ANDOR INTERNATIONAL, AND A DEFEATED SUBORNED AMERICA AMERICA UNDER ANTI-AMER AMER SOCIALISM AND SOCIALIST WORLD ORDER/OWG - but, like good Lefties, they can't be blamed for it or anything. The Left > Get the $$$, NOT the blame, not the bills, not the litigations, nor the death camps-gulags. BUTHA-ISM > the Dems will vote to send Amer boyz/milfors to attack Iran and North Korea and defend Taiwan, etc. before voting against the same. AMERICA CAN FIGHT, WAGE WAR, AND WIN GLOBAL EMPIRE IN POST-9-11 RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION AS LONG AS CLINTONIAN FASCIST = HALFCOMMIE, SOCIALIST = PRE-COMMUNIST AMERIKA LOSES SAID NEW EMPIRE, PLUS SOVEREIGNTY + FREEDOMS + GOVT. + ENDOWMENTS, VOLUNTARILY OR FORCIBLY IN THE END. America and Americans can fight for Democracy + Empire, just NOT Win, Control, or have either or any when all is said and done. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2006-04-19 23:53 |
| #17 Yes Mr. President, I'm sorry to report that both you and Hillary are in the advanced stages of the dreaded..."Jimmy Carter syndrome." There's literally nothing we can do here at Walter Reed, I recommend a long, long vacation, well out of the spotlight, and far, far, far, away. |
| Posted by: Blackwater 2006-04-19 20:07 |
| #16 Jimmy Carter syndrome - f*&k up in the job and spend the rest of your life reminding everyone spot on! |
| Posted by: 2b 2006-04-19 19:53 |
| #15 I intercepted a top democrat memo covering their secret security plans. First, no photo IDs will be required to vote or enter congressional offices. Second, no profiling of any kind except the usual attempts to insult Catholics and members of the American military. Third, release of all detained bombers and other political prisoners and immediate voter registration as democrats. Fourth, removal of the loss of voting rights for felons and the usual voter registration as democrats. Fifth, allow foreign interests to contribute to politicians as needed to advance their business or political interests. Sixth, removal of FBI checks for democrat staff members, but establishment of a high moral standard for new CIA hires. Six A, all FBI files on republican staff and party members are to be forwarded to the DNC for proper distribution. Seventh, IRS audits on all RNC contributors. This would be silly if it weren't based on recent history, eh ? |
| Posted by: wxjames 2006-04-19 14:19 |
| #14 RJ, #1 Zinni was Marine Corps. #2 He was CENTCOM. Regional commanders are responsible for all the assets in their theatre. |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2006-04-19 13:59 |
| #13 Zinni's got a book out now, telling the Dem story about how they will do national security. You KNEW there was a book promo in this, didn't you??? |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-04-19 13:44 |
| #12 1986 |
| Posted by: Unuting Grereque6424 2006-04-19 13:26 |
| #11 I find this whole statement fishy as hell. Since when do Army Generals tell Navy Ships where to go and where to dock? |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2006-04-19 13:23 |
| #10 I think we should make Zinni the first american suicide bomber. We'll send him to.... uh....Tanzania to blow up a hotel. Yeah, thats it. |
| Posted by: Spolusing Glimp9354 2006-04-19 11:45 |
| #9 Gen. Zinni said that cutbacks in the size of the Navy's fleet during the Clinton years made it necessary to use regional ports for refueling, noting: "Ten years ago, we did all refueling at sea" using Navy oilers. Still, prior to the Cole attack, there's no record that Gen. Zinni ever complained about Clinton era defense cuts. Looks like someone else aside from Monica was on his knees in front of our national security. BJs for America's down fall. |
| Posted by: Phineper Ebboluth9569 2006-04-19 11:13 |
| #8 Jimmy Carter syndrome - f*&k up in the job and spend the rest of your life reminding everyone |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-04-19 11:08 |
| #7 Which one, NS, Zinni or Woofy? |
| Posted by: Juger Sluth7665 2006-04-19 11:06 |
| #6 Maybe he shoud STFU and fade away. Quickly. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-04-19 10:31 |
| #5 Maybe the politico-hack writer Tom Clancy can write a new brain for arabist Zinni or assign him to another country. |
| Posted by: SamAdamsky 2006-04-19 10:24 |
| #4 As a civilian, I call on Zinni to resign from the media. He is clearly incompetent and cannot be trusted. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-04-19 10:09 |
| #3 Zinni is a good man. But he's got an ego and also feels that the US is too cozy with Israel. This more or less explains his behavior since retirement. I just wish he'd not taken the Mideast envoy job because somebody less pro-Arab might have sent a better message. Refueling in Aden was a defensible decision but precautions should have been taken to protect the ship. |
| Posted by: JAB 2006-04-19 10:08 |
| #2 Gen. Zinni said that cutbacks in the size of the Navy's fleet during the Clinton years made it necessary to use regional ports for refueling, noting: "Ten years ago, we did all refueling at sea" using Navy oilers. Still, prior to the Cole attack, there's no record that Gen. Zinni ever complained about Clinton era defense cuts. Classic Clinton general CYA. Zinni was a moron then, he is a moron now. Spineless and nothing more than a Democratic ball licker. Good riddance! |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2006-04-19 10:02 |
| #1 ohmygawd! |
| Posted by: Captain America 2006-04-19 09:36 |