More Data Shows Bush Let Bin Laden Get Away At Tora Bora
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The neverending legacy of the failed Bush presidency.
Osama bin Laden was unquestionably within reach of U.S. troops in the mountains of Tora Bora when American military leaders made the crucial and costly decision not to pursue the terrorist leader with massive force, a Senate report says.
The report asserts that the failure to kill or capture bin Laden at his most vulnerable in December 2001 has had lasting consequences beyond the fate of one man. Bin Laden’s escape laid the foundation for today’s reinvigorated Afghan insurgency and inflamed the internal strife now endangering Pakistan, it says.
Staff members for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Democratic majority prepared the report at the request of the chairman, Sen. John Kerry, as President Obama prepares to boost U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
26 Responses to “More Data Shows Bush Let Bin Laden Get Away At Tora Bora”
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© 2000-2011 Oliver Willis
“I could have an Ensure with him”-David Broder
By calling this a legacy of the “failed Bush presidency,” you suggest that letting bin Laden escape Tora Bora was a sign of incompetence. Contrary to popular belief, however, some things which might be explained by stupidity are, in fact, the product of malice. In this case, Bush knew from his father’s example what happens when you finish the job of fighting the “Hitler de jour” too early — your 90% approval ratings collapse just in time for the next election. If Bush had actually captured the Great Arabian Boogie Man less than 3 months after 9/11, does anyone really think he’d have gotten the people to go along with the Iraq War? The Bush Administration allowed bin Laden to escape so that they could later tie bin Laden to Saddam and mislead the country into war. And if that sets up a sequence of events whereby Pakistan later collapses into a Taliban-esque theocracy and terrorists got access to Pakistani nukes, well, somehow that will end up being Obama’s fault, won’t it.
Worst.
President.
Ever.
The report says the reason we didn’t act was because the intelligence was less than reliable. It’s a good thing that the Bush Administration learned it’s lesson and took Sen. Kerry’s recommendation the next time the situation presented itself. Kudos to Sen. Kerry (who, for those who don’t know, served in Vietnam) for his unwavering support.
The report says the reason we didn’t act was because the intelligence was less than reliable.
I wish we could say the same thing about Iraq.
(Still.)
Worst.
President.
Ever.
I suppose one can take any of Bush’s screwups and rationalize reasons.
But the long continuous pattern of political manipulations and corruptions, resulting rewards for “mah base” and punishments for everybody else during those Bush years, strongly suggests a conscious abuse of power or the unconscious use as a tool by those who abuse power.
Jesus did not build Dubya’s hot rod.
Problem is, the unreliable intelligence was the President’s.
“Kudos to Sen. Kerry (who, for those who don’t know, served in Vietnam) for his unwavering support.”
Has the Republic ever had a more stalwart defender?
I like Alan’s scenario the best: The Idiot Bastard Son set up a plot to lead Congress to believe that Saddam Hussein was a threat to stability in the middle east (which, of course, he really wasn’t), so that we could invade Iraq , while chasing the Taliban out of Afghanistan into Pakistan, so that the Taliban could steal nuclear weapons from the Pakistanis.
Wow, that’s really Machiavellian for the Worst. President. Ever.
{ I love that description : it portrays an incredible depth of knowledge about the Presidency. But I always wonder : If he’s actually the WORST, who’s second ? }
Jackson would certainly make my short list.
I know you think that’s a cute turn of phrase, but you couldn’t be more wrong. “Slam Dunk” Tenet, remember?
In my lifetime it would be Carter, but Obama’s only just starting out.
Tell me, how many hundreds of thousands of people died unnecessarily under Carter?
But, of course, all that matters to you is the Almighty Dollar.
Pop Quiz, Hotshot: Which US Senator told Larry King…:
During the middle of Tora Bora, Kerry approved of Bush’s handling of the situation. Making Kerry’s attacks today nothing more than Monday Morning Quarterbacking of the crassest kind.
birds of a feather … cut from the same cloth …
Who was Tenet working for at the time he made that ridiculous statement?
Sure; Jessica Lynch.
Cheney.
Exactly. He was just trying to cover his political ass…….
The report says the reason we didn’t act was because the intelligence was less than reliable.
There’s an understatement.
…and really don’t need affirmation from Kerry (or anyone else) that Bush was a f**k up. We were there…
Ha! Ha! Yes!
Just because someone is an evil genius doesn’t exclude them from being the worst public servant in memory, Frank.
Besides, he had plenty of help from his father’s lackeys.
Tenet’s “slam dunk” remark may be the most abused bit of history from the Bush era.
Farris, please explain the context for Tenet’s remark if you can.
WOW – if this report isn’t full of lies. Let us go back to the News Paper archives for December of 2001 we were bombing the hell out the TORA BORA mountains. Let us also go back to an interview with John Kerry in Dec. 2001 where he was asked why he wasn’t supporting more troops in Afghanistan at the time – he said what we were doing at the time didn’t need more troops in there. They are really counting on people having short memories and being too stupid to read news paper archives and the Library of Congress. SORRY JOHN KERRY your REPORT IS B.S.