Bush prematurely ended a terror investigation to maximize political gain

[ProSense]

A senior British official knowledgeable about the case said British police were planning to continue to run surveillance for at least another week to try to obtain more evidence, while American officials pressured them to arrest the suspects sooner. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the case.

In contrast to previous reports, the official suggested an attack was not imminent, saying the suspects had not yet purchased any airline tickets. In fact, some did not even have passports.

The source did say, however, that police believe one U.K.-based suspect was ready to conduct a "dry run." British authorities had wanted to let him go forward with part of the plan, but the Americans balked.

At the White House, a top aide to President Bush denied the account.

Snip...

Another U.S. official, however, acknowledges there was disagreement over timing. Analysts say that in recent years, American security officials have become edgier than the British in such cases because of missed opportunities leading up to 9/11.

more...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14320452

SECURITY

'A STARK REMINDER': President says plot validates his priorities

(08-11) 04:00 PDT Washington -- President Bush called the foiled plan to blow up passengers aboard U.S.-bound airplanes "a stark reminder that this nation is at war with Islamic fascists,'' but unlike in past incidents, critics were quick to challenge his priorities in fighting terror and his credibility in protecting the nation.

"This country is safer than it was prior to 9/11. We've taken a lot of measures to protect the American people. But obviously, we're still not completely safe, because there are people that still plot and people who want to harm us for what we believe in,'' Bush said from the tarmac of an airport in Green Bay, Wis., where he traveled to deliver a speech on the economy and stump for GOP candidates.

more...

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/11/MNGL2KGOO71.DTL

Seems Bush was more concerned with the timing than the integrity of the investigation.

[marmar]

1. I guess this should come as no surprise...

There's nothing these demons will not attempt to exploit.

[babylonsister]

2. This was suspected; they had to terrorize the masses. What better way? nt

[Patchuli]

5. But I thought the official story was

when Dick Cheney got called on using the terrorism button that the WH didn't know about the plot. So which is it??? They either knew or didn't. Either way, their ass is showing on this one. I cannot believe anyone is still stupid enough to give these losers a 'bump' in the polls on this.

LIARS...!

[AJ9000]

11. Now why doesn't that surprise me? They've done at least twice before.

Once when an Al Qaed operative was caught and turned into a mole, the * administration publicized his capture in order to gain political points. The trouble is when they did this, he obviously could no longer be used as a mole, and all his value was lost. This infuriated British intelligence.

And of course there is plenty of sound evidence that they had a hand in outing Valerie Plame in order to punish Joe Wilson. And what did she work on? Weapons of mass destruction intelligence gathering.

The fact is these guys have severely retarded this so-called "war on terror" with both their reckless foreign policy, and their willingness to damage operations in progress in order to gain political points.

Unfortunately they're not done yet. They're looking for a way to make war in the Middle East just before the November elections.

[Olney Blue]

3. All the confiscated perfume in the world can't make this smell good.

[mnhtnbb]

4. Nailed.

[AzDar]

6. Liars and fools..and desperate to hold on to power. Frightening. n/t

[rocktivity]

7. The words "George Bush" and "integrity" don't belong in the same UNIVERSE

never mind the same sentence.

So now it's official--the airport crackdown was totally unnescessary. Now we know why the story unraveled faster than a stripper's costume--and didn't Bush do this once before?

:headbang:
rocknation

[pepperbear]

8. We're really glad the bad guys were caught (by the UK)....

but can't this be the story just for an eensy eensy little while?

[Straight Shooter]

9. How can it validate his priorities when he sought to cut funding?

The bush administration was trying to cut $6 million worth of funding that would help to discover if someone was carrying liquid explosives. I don't have the link, but there's a thread or two about it here on DU and it's all over the media.

His only priority is capitalizing on the fear factor.

[leesa]

10. Ain't the first time he did it to the Brits, or so they say.

They don't have enough evidence to charge these guys though after months of spying on them. Peculiar, huh?

[JohMunich99]

12. Could you pass some vanilla, err.. I mean yellow cake?

:scared:

[The Backlash Cometh]

13. It was election timing, stupid.

I bet they wanted it published PRIOR to the Lieberman election. Thank God, the brits didn't fall for it...again.

[ProSense]

14. Bush "strong on terror" a product of media hype

Q But don't you believe that the threat that bin Laden posed won't truly be eliminated until he is found either dead or alive?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, as I say, we haven't heard much from him. And I wouldn't necessarily say he's at the center of any command structure. And, again, I don't know where he is. I -- I'll repeat what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him. I know he is on the run. I was concerned about him, when he had taken over a country. I was concerned about the fact that he was basically running Afghanistan and calling the shots for the Taliban.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/03/20020313-8.html

Nothing has changed, still clueless!