Pat Roberts: Declassify it. Don't criticize it.

   Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, the Kansas Republican, weighed in on the controversy over the latest National Intelligence Estimate.

    The New York Times reported Sunday that the NIE said the Iraq war had helped fuel Islamic radicalism and jihad. The White House said the report was an incomplete assessment of the NIE.

  Folks from left and right have subsequently called for the report to be declassified so it can be read and analyzed in its entirety.

  Roberts agreed: "The administration should declassify this document so the American people can see the material for themselves and come to their own conclusions."

   Roberts said his committee has had the NIE since April and said "There is a false impression that the NIE focuses solely on Iraq and terrorism. That is not true. The NIE examines global terrorism in its totality. In this regard , I also agree with (National Intelligence) Director (John) Negroponte that we have had notable successes against the terrorists but that there is much that remains to be done."

Posted by Matt Stearns

Comments

[Ed Friedemann]

Using buzz-words such as: " Islamic radicalism, jihad, terrorist, or terrorism" is very misleading, when we are creating nothing more the "angry men" in this "killing machine" we're running in Iraq.

The entire effort is pointless.

The lunacy of PNAC is building nothing, with the exception of "angry men."

2 1/2 billion dollars a week and dead soldiers and Iraqis serves no purpose, and if the MSM wasn't hiding the daily results of this Zionist Utopia, the troops would be home with their families and Iraqis would settle their difference as they have already done in western Iraq.

BTW Haaretz newspaper has stopped calling Hezbollah a "terrorist organization" and now is referring to them as "militants."

In Eric Bernies book; "The games People Play" this Iraq mess is called "Let you and him fight"

If you can look at what the Zionist-Jews did to Lebanon, you might begin to understand what is actually taking place.

[Nisan Chavkin]

"if the MSM wasn't hiding the daily results of this Zionist Utopia... BTW Haaretz newspaper has stopped calling Hezbollah a "terrorist organization" and now is referring to them as 'militants'.... If you can look at what the Zionist-Jews did to Lebanon..."

Is this an examplar of what "civic engagement" looks like, KC style?

Nisan Chavkin [Mr.]
Evanston, Illinois

[Enja]

But, Roberts only wants parts of the report declassified. Don't trust Roberts. He's lied before and held up reports until after elections. Bush will only pick parts that support his views.

[CRD]

"Is this an examplar of what "civic engagement" looks like, KC style?"

[ CRD: Sentence deleted. No name-calling, please. Keith ]

Ignore Ed.

[Paul]

No but according to Bush we're not like the terrorists who are "willing to kill innocent people to acheive their goals".

Is it that he never graduated from nursery school or does he just think the rest of us didn't?

Our whole country is founded on the killing of innocents to acheive our goals. Just the egg shells of our "freedom omelette".

[portly]

smells like another Conservatard trap to me. Headlines come out that it rocks the administration, only to find out later that it doesn't. Shrub is a hero.

Happened with the Torture thing. Hero Repub senators ride to the moral rescue, then sell the ranch at the end, allowing BusgCo to smell like roses...

The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Phase II Report Delayed Until After 2006 Midterm Elections. CQ reported: “A Senate panel investigation into the use of intelligence leading up the the Iraq war remains in limbo after almost three years of politically charged clashes over the content and conclusions of the inquiry.” Roberts “set still more deadlines… for finalizing some of the work despite those differences.” Under the new deadlines, the report will have “virtually no chance of being completed before the fall elections.” [CQ, 7/11/06]

http://public.cq.com/public/20060711_intel.html

Hey, Roberts, what are you trying to hide?

[jack]

We all know what the Reps are hiding. They are hiding the fact that getting and keeping power is far more important to them than running the country. All that matters is the spin cycle.

That is why Clinton was "using the military to distract the country" from the "non-political" impeachment the Reps ran when he tried to kill Bin Laden. Now he is "playing politics" when he says he did indeed go after Bin Laden.

Typical Rovian smear campaign. It is all Clinton's fault.

I ask the Bushites over and over again, "When does this Congress and Administration become responsible for anything?"

I never get a straight answer. The Republican slogan should be "No matter what we do, it's not our fault."

[shrugging]

I sometimes wonder why some people jump so quickly to conspiracy theories? But, the report being discussed was CLASSIFIED. The portions leaked are certainly helpful to those wishing to portray a certain view of the conflict on terrorism and apparently (which is all we can say since none of us has seen the report) not representative of the overall conlusion according to other sources. Why don't we wait till we all read it and then fire our talking points.

On the point of fueling terrorism I can only say two things: 1) no successful attacks in US since 9/11 and 2) the terrorist hate America not Republicans or Bush lest we forget the string of attacks and deaths during previous administrations that were not "hated" by the world.

[Dickeylee]

How about that NIS report on Iraq? The one that the NIS won't admit they have, or else they'd have to release it to select congressmen. Looking for it around November 8th?

[jack]

Yep, all those reports need to be "declassified" is for election day to pass. Or, as an alternative, they will "declassify selected parts" that can be used in Republican campaigns prior to the election and sit on the rest until after.

Why do people see these "conspiracies"? Because that is what we have been watching this bunch do for a long time.

Gomer Pile was right, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

Aren't we up to "fool me ten times" sometime back?

[milwolf]

Ed , Nisan , Jack, you sound like propagandists for the radical left
and sympathizers for the Islamist facists.

Your hatred of Bush blinds you to the realities of the Islamist facists
who want to destroy America and kill you and your loved ones. Iraq was necessary to depose Saddam and his terrorist regime ( he was paying $25M to the families for every homicide bomber ! ). The Patriot Act and NSA have prevented attacks and spared the lives of millions. Ed, Jack, and Nisan, the next terrorist attack will not discriminate among its victims and spare you.. All of us will suffer!!!

milwolf, I don't want to hear a peep out of you if the police search your home or car without probable cause, because that is, in effect, what the NSA is doing.

[shrugging]

How about some evidence of illegal searches not just sound bites? Let's see, the NSA telephone record program provides corraborating evidence that helped stop the recent airline/liquid explosives plot. I am more worried about what the fear mongering/frantic left would do with my phone records that anything that is happening now.

By gosh, I can't wait till the transparent DEMs are in power. I sure will feel safer and so will the terrorist which by the way will not in the least change their goals.

[CRD]

"By gosh, I can't wait till the transparent DEMs are in power."

I don't care who's in power -- I still want my 4th amendment rights in place!

Call me a tad paranoid, but I think power corrupts, and we have the protections we have, and the checks and balances we have, to ensure that no one person or entity has too much power.

Here's an email signature for you:

NOTICE: Due to Presidential Executive Orders, the National Security Agency may have read this email without warning, warrant, or notice, and certainly without probable cause. They may do this without any judicial or legislative oversight. You have no recourse, nor protection, save to call for the impeachment of the current President.

[Jon]

So where exactly does it say in the constitution that the goverment can't listen in on Internation phone calls by suspected terrorists? I am sorry but I don’t understand all the sreaming some people do about their rights being eroded. Its just macho grand standing. Look at me, look at me….my rights are being eroded so I am going to whin about it. If Thomas Jefferson were alive today he’d slap people.

[BeProudAmerica]

Thinking back to the days of Jefferson, Washington and the Continental Army.

The Continental Army see a message courier riding towards a British Army camp. Washington instructs his soldiers to stop the courier and intercept the message which has battle plans.

Could you imagine the outcry about the invasion of civil liberties, the abuse of power and the invasion of the courier's privacy.

Just think about it.

[jack]

milwolf: Cute name. Double entendre and all. My understanding is that it wasn't $25M, as in million, but $25K, as in thousand. Last I heard it wasn't Saddam but it WAS the Saudis.

I was saddened to learn that I am a liberal, unpatriotic, terrorist lover. Funny thing is I used to be a conservative. Then I became a "liberal" without ever changing my personal beliefs. I must have missed an email at some point informing me of the change.

I always thought that small, unobtrusive, government with limited power to invade a person's life was a "Conservative" issue. Geuss I was wrong.

Of course, I also thought that limiting the national debt and providing our troops with what they need were "conservative" issues. Geuss I was wrong there too.

And Thomas Jefferson? It amazes me that those that wish to violate everything he held dearest at the founding of our country now claim to be the holders of his mantle.

Jefferson wrote that the reason for the Constitutional Right To Berar Arms was so that the government woud have a good level of fear that the people were capable of overthrowing it at any time. He also wrote that the reason for the division of chuurch and State was NOT to protect religion from government but rather to protect the government from takeover by religious zealots.

BTW: The Bush Administration had zero knowledge of the plot against our airliners. The English busted the entire thing through what Bush claims is the wrong way to stop terrorism. They used good, old fashioned, police work.

Knowing how the Bush people like to use anything possible for political advantage, the British didn't tell them anything until the terrorists were ready to make a "dry run". Then, when they informed the Bush people about it, the Bushites were in such a hurry to go public that the English had to cut their investigation short.

Who knows how many involved are running around loose so that the Bushies could get a couple souund bites.

Amount of information obtained by warrantless wire taps? ZERO.

[CRD]

"So where exactly does it say in the constitution that the goverment can't listen in on Internation phone calls by suspected terrorists?"

No one's saying that you can't wiretap suspected terrorists. But you can't wiretap just anyone making overseas phone calls. You have to show probable cause and get a warrant.

The FISA Court reviews such warrant requests. This process works. The Court approves about 1,000 warrants a year, and only rarely denies a warrant as having insufficient evidence.

http://foi.missouri.edu/secretcourts/seccrtrebuffs.html

Historically, only 4 warrant request were denied by the FISA court, from its inception through 2004:

http://www.epic.org/privacy/wiretap/stats/fisa_stats.html

[jack]

Why should the Executive Branch be requiredd to accept oversite from the other branches? Because that is what prevents us from becoming a dictatorship.

milwolf, that koolaid you are drinking is blinding you a lot more than our mistrust (and yes HATE) of your president.

[shrugging]

Jack, those are some pretty broad statements about Jefferson. I would like to see some quotes to back it up. Jefferson is oftened used to support opposite side of arguments.
Yes, Jefferson and the rest of the founding fathers would be shocked at the size and breadth of our federal government but no reasonable person could claim that it is the fault of the "Bushites". That if conservative priciples were freely applied the size and scope of our government would dramatically change is undeniable but there is too much water under that bridge and likely the best that can be done it to look at each current issue through a conservative lens and act accordingly. We can certainly debate how we got to where we are but you will find the expansion of government to most often be attached to Democratic administrations.

I certainly would never say that I agree with everything thing the current administration has done but neither is that required is order to support our country in the larger struggle against terrorism. Of course, it is difficult for some to avoid political posturing even when there are much greater issues than who sits in the White House at stake.

It is undeniable that to provide for the defense of our country is the most basic duty of the federal government. You can't be conservative is your are not "conserving" American" lives. And looking at telephone calling patterns (not wiretapping) in order to identify suspicious behavior to the then be investigated seems to me a perfectly logical and absolutely necessary step.