I don't know if anyone was listening to NPR this morning, but I am struck by the difference between the VERY strong words of Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Jay Rockefeller in the briefing accompanying the release of the report concerning intelligence failures related to the decision to go to war in Iraq, and the summary of the report and briefing being carried by the Associated Press and others. The report is largely a point-by-point analysis of the major claims made by the Bush Administration in the run-up to war: existing WMD, links to al Qaeda, attempts to acquire additional WMD technology, UAVs, etc.
In particular, Rockefeller spoke quite passionately about his own personal conclusion that pressure was INDEED exerted on analysts by Bush Administration officials to come up with intelligence supporting the charge to war, especially in the area of trying to tie Iraq to al Qaeda. In response, Pat Roberts, the committee chairman, took the same line as what was written in the report -- namely, that the act of Bush, Cheney, and others in the administration "asking questions repeatedly" was completely appropriate and exuded no "pressure" on analysts (Conclusion 11 in the 30-page summary of conclusions from the 511-page report), even though the questions were frequently asked in the media and often accompanied by presumptive conclusions about what the analysis would yield.
However, if you read Conclusion 102, it seems quite clear that pressure was INDEED applied to analysts investigating the alleged terror connection -- stopping short of outright DIRECTION to change conclusions, of course. The conclusions in the report about Cheney, etc. not pressuring analysts has to do SPECIFICALLY with the WMD intelligence, and does not clear him (or others in the administration) of applying pressure in other areas. Further, as Rockefeller pointed out in his statement, this report specifically EXCLUDED consideration of the Bush Administration's actions with respect to this intelligence, which is being reserved for Phase II of the investigation. (Personal note: how convenient.)
Yet, when you look at some of the major news wire services, here are some interpretations of the news conference and report:
AFP: No evidence administration pressured CIA on Iraq findings: US Senate
"WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US Senate intelligence committee report said there was no evidence that President George W. Bush's administration pressured CIA analysts to modify their findings on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
'The committee didn't find any evidence that administration officials attempted to coerce, influence or pressure analysts to change their judgments related to Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capabilities,' the 400-page report said. "
Reuters: U.S. Intelligence Slanted Reports on Iraqi Weapons
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies overstated the threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and ignored contrary evidence in the run-up to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, a Senate committee reported on Friday.
In a harshly critical report, partly blacked out for security reasons, the Senate Intelligence Committee took U.S. spy agencies to task for numerous failures in their reporting on alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons have been found.
But the committee absolved the Bush administration of charges that it put pressure on analysts to reach pre-set conclusions."
Only the Associated Press mentioned Jay Rockefeller's comments or the limited scope of the absolution in the report with respect to Bush Administration pressure on the intelligence process.
What the hell is going on in this country?
In particular, Rockefeller spoke quite passionately about his own personal conclusion that pressure was INDEED exerted on analysts by Bush Administration officials to come up with intelligence supporting the charge to war, especially in the area of trying to tie Iraq to al Qaeda. In response, Pat Roberts, the committee chairman, took the same line as what was written in the report -- namely, that the act of Bush, Cheney, and others in the administration "asking questions repeatedly" was completely appropriate and exuded no "pressure" on analysts (Conclusion 11 in the 30-page summary of conclusions from the 511-page report), even though the questions were frequently asked in the media and often accompanied by presumptive conclusions about what the analysis would yield.
However, if you read Conclusion 102, it seems quite clear that pressure was INDEED applied to analysts investigating the alleged terror connection -- stopping short of outright DIRECTION to change conclusions, of course. The conclusions in the report about Cheney, etc. not pressuring analysts has to do SPECIFICALLY with the WMD intelligence, and does not clear him (or others in the administration) of applying pressure in other areas. Further, as Rockefeller pointed out in his statement, this report specifically EXCLUDED consideration of the Bush Administration's actions with respect to this intelligence, which is being reserved for Phase II of the investigation. (Personal note: how convenient.)
Yet, when you look at some of the major news wire services, here are some interpretations of the news conference and report:
AFP: No evidence administration pressured CIA on Iraq findings: US Senate
"WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US Senate intelligence committee report said there was no evidence that President George W. Bush's administration pressured CIA analysts to modify their findings on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
'The committee didn't find any evidence that administration officials attempted to coerce, influence or pressure analysts to change their judgments related to Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capabilities,' the 400-page report said. "
Reuters: U.S. Intelligence Slanted Reports on Iraqi Weapons
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies overstated the threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and ignored contrary evidence in the run-up to the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, a Senate committee reported on Friday.
In a harshly critical report, partly blacked out for security reasons, the Senate Intelligence Committee took U.S. spy agencies to task for numerous failures in their reporting on alleged Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons have been found.
But the committee absolved the Bush administration of charges that it put pressure on analysts to reach pre-set conclusions."
Only the Associated Press mentioned Jay Rockefeller's comments or the limited scope of the absolution in the report with respect to Bush Administration pressure on the intelligence process.
What the hell is going on in this country?
