CIA Shakeup
By Michael Ledeen
I'm not surprised to see people leaving the CIA. Their work for the past decade and more has been exposed by a long series of congressional committees and presidential commissions as a significant failure.
Perhaps the most surprising thing is that it has taken so long. I recommended a thorough housecleaning of the CIA, FBI and other agencies engaged in counterterrorism on Sept. 12, 2001, when their errors and shortcomings were so tragically demonstrated.
Some of these failed analysts and operatives complain — in leaks and “anonymous” books and essays — that we have somehow lost our focus in the war against terrorism. What did they think the interminable presidential campaign was all about, anyway?
They support this odd contention by claiming that some of our most vigorous anti-terrorist actions — notably in Iraq — have actually made things worse by killing large numbers of terrorists and destroying two tyrannical regimes that supported them. This, they say, rallies the faithful to support jihad. They want to go after the “root causes” of terrorism, usually identified as poverty, American support for corrupt regimes in the Middle East and support for Israel.
Such claims show how bad professional analysis has been. The 9/11 terrorists came from good families, were well educated and had plenty of opportunity for upward mobility. So did the man who murdered Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, and the assassin of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, a critic of Islamic extremism.
I'm all for withdrawing American support from corrupt regimes, but I doubt it will transform jihadists into buddies. It would be morally disgusting and geopolitically counterproductive to abandon Israel. America must support democratic societies, and we must convince those who share our values around the world that they can count on us. That, as President Bush has said, means killing terrorists and supporting freedom.
It was widely reported that the CIA had not a single human agent in Iraq as of Sept. 11, 2001. That alone shows the magnitude of the failure of those people now leaking and whining as they finally leave.
Michael Ledeen is a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, specializing in terrorism and foreign policy.
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I'm not surprised to see people leaving the CIA. Their work for the past decade and more has been exposed by a long series of congressional committees and presidential commissions as a significant failure.
Perhaps the most surprising thing is that it has taken so long. I recommended a thorough housecleaning of the CIA, FBI and other agencies engaged in counterterrorism on Sept. 12, 2001, when their errors and shortcomings were so tragically demonstrated.
Some of these failed analysts and operatives complain — in leaks and “anonymous” books and essays — that we have somehow lost our focus in the war against terrorism. What did they think the interminable presidential campaign was all about, anyway?
They support this odd contention by claiming that some of our most vigorous anti-terrorist actions — notably in Iraq — have actually made things worse by killing large numbers of terrorists and destroying two tyrannical regimes that supported them. This, they say, rallies the faithful to support jihad. They want to go after the “root causes” of terrorism, usually identified as poverty, American support for corrupt regimes in the Middle East and support for Israel.
Such claims show how bad professional analysis has been. The 9/11 terrorists came from good families, were well educated and had plenty of opportunity for upward mobility. So did the man who murdered Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, and the assassin of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, a critic of Islamic extremism.
I'm all for withdrawing American support from corrupt regimes, but I doubt it will transform jihadists into buddies. It would be morally disgusting and geopolitically counterproductive to abandon Israel. America must support democratic societies, and we must convince those who share our values around the world that they can count on us. That, as President Bush has said, means killing terrorists and supporting freedom.
It was widely reported that the CIA had not a single human agent in Iraq as of Sept. 11, 2001. That alone shows the magnitude of the failure of those people now leaking and whining as they finally leave.
Michael Ledeen is a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, specializing in terrorism and foreign policy.
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Comments
By a voice vote, and with a handful of lawmakers voicing opposition, the House Republican Conference decided that a party committee of several dozen members would review any felony indictment of a party leader and recommend at that time whether the leader should step aside.How about some context?
House Republicans adopted the indictment rule in 1993, when they were trying to end four decades of Democratic control of the House, in part by highlighting Democrats' ethical lapses. They said at the time that they held themselves to higher standards than prominent Democrats such as then-Ways and Means Chairman Dan Rostenkowski (Ill.), who eventually pleaded guilty to mail fraud and was sentenced to prison."(Via Geekable.com.)
Anyway, Bob, based upon what I read about the FBI, they were really in need of a house cleaning, but somehow that institution seems to have avoided most of the controversy.
However, is the Bush administration seeking better/truthful intelligence or is it seeking an agency that supports the White House's policies. I think the jury is out. Remember months ago I pointed out that even though Tennet said there were WMD's in Iraq, before Congress in Sept of 2002 he stated Iraq would never use WMD's against the US unless attacked. George went off the radar (public statements) until after the war began. He did sit behind uncle tom powell at the UN. I can hardly wait until Powell's future is secured so that he can write a "kiss and tell" book about the Bush administration.