Posted by
Defend America on Wednesday, February 03, 2010 7:03:14 PM
Obama admnistration takes several wrong paths in dealing with terrorism
By Michael V. Hayden
Sunday, January 31, 2010
In the war on terrorism, this country faces an enemy whose theory of
warfare ends the hard-won distinction in modern thought between
combatant and noncombatant. In doing that for which we have created
government -- ensuring life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness --
how can we be adequately aggressive to ensure the first value, without
unduly threatening the other two? This is hard. And people don't have
to be lazy or stupid to get it wrong.
We got it wrong in Detroit on Christmas Day. We allowed an enemy
combatant the protections of our Constitution before we had adequately
interrogated him. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is not "an isolated extremist." He is the tip of the spear of a complex al-Qaeda plot to kill Americans in our homeland.
In the 50 minutes the FBI had to question him, agents reportedly got
actionable intelligence. Good. But were there any experts on al-Qaeda
in the Arabian Peninsula in the room (other than Abdulmutallab)? Was
there anyone intimately familiar with any National Security Agency raw
traffic to, from or about the captured terrorist? Did they have a list
or photos of suspected recruits?
When questioning its detainees, the CIA routinely turns the
information provided over to its experts for verification and
recommendations for follow-up. The responses of these experts -- "Press
him more on this, he knows the details" or "First time we've heard
that" -- helps set up more detailed questioning.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/29/AR2010012903954.html