As I have pointed out before (1, 2, 3), the problem with reelecting Bush on his record of fighting terrorism is that his record on fighting terrorism is terrible.
Well, today it’s all over the news because Richard Clarke, the former “terrorism czar” who served under Reagan, Bush I, Clinton and Bush II, said so on 60 Minutes yesterday and in a new book. He provides a detailed account of the ways that the Bush administration downplayed the threat from Al Qaeda before 9/11, actually reversing Clinton Administration efforts to tackle the problem of Osama Bin Laden.
The White House, of course, has begun a vigorous campaign to discredit Clarke, just as they have attempted to discredit former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and former Ambassador Joseph Wilson (the latter by feloniously revealing that his wife, Valerie Plame, was a covert CIA operative). It’s more of the same pattern of blaming someone else and pretending that problems aren’t really there. This isn’t leadership, it’s fantasy.
The Democratic Party has a petition up to demand the truth. Sign it if you’re interested.