Cheney's screw-up order after 9/11!

[TexasSissy]

I hope Edwards mentions the order that Cheney gave shortly after the hits of 9/11 that he screwed up. It's evidence that (1) Cheney is the power behind the throne; and (2) Even if he's the power, he's not a good leader.

I heard the recount of this during the 9/11 hearings. This was part of the staff's report to the Commission and included readings of transcripts. Immediately after 9/11, shortly after Cheney got to the bunker, he spoke with a military person on the phone and issued the order that all planes found flying around the White House were to be shot down. The transcript was read of that military person's conversation with one of the pilots responsible for scouting the air around the White House. It was decided, the staff person said to the Commission, that the pilots would not follow the order. The staff person said, as I recall, that the order was not clear enough IN MILITARY TERMS to them. If a military person gives such an order, esp. such a shocking order as that (to shoot down American passenger planes), it is supposed to be given in a certain way---in military lingo.

Cheney's REAL screw-up happened when he shortly thereafter spoke with Rumsfeld on the phone. Rumsfeld was at or coming from the Pentagon, which had been hit by that time. Rumsfeld asked Cheney if any orders had been given to shoot down any planes near the W.H. Cheney said yes, he'd given the order. Rumsfeld, a military man, asked if the military personnel understood that order. Cheney said yes. I believe that Rumsfeld asked AGAIN if he was sure that that order had been understood by the military, and Cheney said yes. Cheney didn't say "Why don't you doublecheck that?" realizing that that is Rumsfeld apparent area of expertise. He just told Rumsfeld he'd taken care of it.

Of course, we now know that if a plane had entered the W.H. air space, that plane would NOT have been shot down because the order had been either incorrectly given, or not understood. BIG SCREW-UP. Boy, are we lucky that there wasn't another plane headed to the W.H.

And THAT is one of our great neocon leaders at work. A non-military neocon arrogant leader. You know - the one in control of this country now.

I hope Edwards gets to point this out - an actual instance of how Cheney would handle things. A total screw-up.