The todo about Able Danger and what the FBI should or should not have known about Mohammad Atta has increased scrutiny of the 9/11 Commission report and renewed the debate over the “wall” between law enforcement and anti-terrorism efforts (see, e.g., here and here). Time will tell whether there is anything to the Able Danger story — and whether or not the “wall” inhibited information shargin — but it is clearer than ever that Jamie Gorelick should not have served on the 9/11 Commission. Whether or not she deserves credit or blame for the “wall” and other Clinton Administration policies, her presence on the commission undermines its credibility, and provides undo fodder for political partisans and conspiracy theorists. This is a point I made last year (see here and here). As I wrote last May:
the issue is not whether Ms. Gorelick made reasonable decisions as a Justice Department official. I have no interest in seeing the 9/11 Commission’s work devolve into partisan finger-pointing about which administration is most at fault. Many people, in multiple administrations, made decisions that — it can be seen in hindsight — were in error. These people should be testifying before the 9/11 Commission, not participating on it. For this reason, and this reason along, Ms. Gorelick has no place on the Commission. Unless the Commissioners recognize this fact, the Commission will not fulfill its mandate of producing a neutral and credible report on the policy failures that led to 9/11.
Comments are closed.