Here is the text of the August 6, 2001 Presidential Daily Briefing memo declassified by the White House:

Clandestine, foreign government, and media reports indicate bin Laden since 1997 has wanted to conduct terrorist attacks in the US. Bin Laden implied in U.S. television interviews in 1997 and 1998 that his followers would follow the example of World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef and "bring the fighting to America."

After U.S. missile strikes on his base in Afghanistan in 1998, bin Laden told followers he wanted to retaliate in Washington, according to a -- -- service.

An Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) operative told - - service at the same time that bin Laden was planning to exploit the operative's access to the U.S. to mount a terrorist strike.

The millennium plotting in Canada in 1999 may have been part of bin Laden's first serious attempt to implement a terrorist strike in the U.S.

Convicted plotter Ahmed Ressam has told the FBI that he conceived the idea to attack Los Angeles International Airport himself, but that in ---, Laden lieutenant Abu Zubaydah encouraged him and helped facilitate the operation. Ressam also said that in 1998 Abu Zubaydah was planning his own U.S. attack.

Ressam says bin Laden was aware of the Los Angeles operation. Although Bin Laden has not succeeded, his attacks against the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 demonstrate that he prepares operations years in advance and is not deterred by setbacks. Bin Laden associates surveyed our embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam as early as 1993, and some members of the Nairobi cell planning the bombings were arrested and deported in 1997.

Al Qaeda members -- including some who are U.S. citizens -- have resided in or traveled to the U.S. for years, and the group apparently maintains a support structure that could aid attacks.

Two al-Qaeda members found guilty in the conspiracy to bomb our embassies in East Africa were U.S. citizens, and a senior EIJ member lived in California in the mid-1990s.

A clandestine source said in 1998 that a bin Laden cell in New York was recruiting Muslim-American youth for attacks.

We have not been able to corroborate some of the more sensational threat reporting, such as that from a ---- service in 1998 saying that Bin Laden wanted to hijack a U.S. aircraft to gain the release of "Blind Sheikh" Omar Abdel Rahman and other U.S.-held extremists.

Nevertheless, FBI information since that time indicates patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks, including recent surveillance of federal buildings in New York.

The FBI is conducting approximately 70 full-field investigations throughout the U.S. that it considers bin Laden-related. CIA and the FBI are investigating a call to our embassy in the UAE in May saying that a group or bin Laden supporters was in the U.S. planning attacks with explosives.

Examining this memo, what actions do you think were warranted based on the information presented? Are there any specific items in the memo that require action at the level of the chief executive?

Matt

Don't hold your breath waiting for an impartial reply. That memo's got just enough said and not said to keep both sides arguing.
How about getting Chomsky's opinion, purely from the syntactical analysis point of view.

I am actually hoping (I know.....) for some impartial discussion of the memo itself. I have witheld my own view of the memo in the hope of not influencing the direction of the thread right out of the gate (not that my opinion shapes threads anyway).

Matt

Please also bear in mind that this memo was in direct response to questions posed by GWB (to the FBI) regarding the threat from bin Laden, along the lines of "what do you know and what are you doing about"..
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The memo is not sufficiently specific for anyone to have anticipated (and therefore take action about) the WTC attacks.

It's not what's IN the memo that means anything, because there isn't anything that means anything that could have been acted upon to stop 911.

It's the memo ITSELF that's important that shows how the commission has sunk to a new low of partisan witch hunting.
All the Democrats on the panel are doing is trotting out anything they can and hope it sticks. Condi blew Clarke out of the water so now they have to have a look at this. If this doesn't work, they'll try to find something in Woodward's new book.
If that doesn't work, they'll want to get Big Bird in front of the panel so he can discuss how HE warned Bush's people ahead of time all about 911. Then in successive order, they'll be calling up Snoopy, Morris the Cat and eventually, Hillary Clinton who has a little bit less credibility than Big Bird, Snoopy and Morris.

The Dems are going to try to suck this dry until the election itself, and when the election is over, the panel will put out some stupid little memo about how "no matter what anyone says, the Clinton's did everything they could to stop 911 but the Bush people didn't because Bush wanted to use it to get re-elected".

I can't imagine why I'm so cynical.

Highflight

Leave Snoopy out of it. He's a war hero.

Matt

Originally Posted by MattLarson29

Leave Snoopy out of it. He's a war hero.

Matt

That's right ... anyone who's been shot down by the Red Baron that many times and survived is a Hero in my book.

Okay .. back on topic. I think the Dems were hoping that the memo wouldn't be released, so that they could continuously refer to it and have to not back up their assertions with facts.

Logan5

Originally Posted by logan5

That's right ... anyone who's been shot down by the Red Baron that many times and survived is a Hero in my book.

Okay .. back on topic. I think the Dems were hoping that the memo wouldn't be released, so that they could continuously refer to it and have to not back up their assertions with facts.

Logan5

I wouldn't disagree with you on that either, Logan.

It's really a shotgun effect the Dems are looking for. It the memo didn't come out, they could keep referring to it. Now that it's out, the alternate tactic is to try to find something IN it. But there isn't anything in it so they'll soon move on to their next item on their "anti-Bush" wish list.
Never forget that this commission was originally supposed to be DONE several months ago until the Dems realized that they could get more mileage out of it during this election year. As I said, this commission won't be done until after November this year.

ADDENDUM: I wish to publicly apologize for impuning Snoopy's character if it was indeed assumed that I did.
Snoopy's military record, as is common knowledge and when compared to Bill Clinton's "military record" by his earlier paying his way out of the draft and then with regard to HIS selling out the U.S. by giving high level nuclear secrets to the Chinese, show's that Snoopy has put himself in mortal danger many times in order to insure the security of the United States. Snoop has clearly offered himself up and was willing to pay the highest price for his beloved country, America.
At no time did I intend to suggest that a mangy, flea bitten dog has less character than Bill Clinton.
So I'm really, really, really sorry. I really, really am.

Highflight

I thought Snoopy was shot down early in the war, and received all his medals for injuries suffered in drunken barfights over local barmaids.

For proof and more shocking background on your favorite characters, buy my new book...

At least Bill did'nt lie EVERY day...............

Jim

Originally Posted by MattLarson29

I am actually hoping (I know.....) for some impartial discussion of the memo itself.
Matt

Unfortuately, nothing could have been done.

Even with this memo now public knowledge, and with every politician and enforcement agency in the USA now aware of it, does anyone really think another type of large scale attack can absolutely be prevented?

How about this" Bush is briefed as to the planes and targets. He orders fighters up and they shoot down the planes. The towers are still standing. Is he the hero? How many Dems will appaude him?

Originally Posted by me11owman

At least Bill did'nt lie EVERY day...............

Jim

Nope. Only when it mattered, e.g. under oath to Congress, and to his wife, etc.

Rick

that's true. Clinton only lied when his lips moved.