Quote: President Clinton had at least three chances before 9/11 to try to kill Osama bin Laden - but never took his shot, a new congressional report revealed yesterday.
"We had a round in our chamber and we didn't use it. That's how I see it," snapped former Democratic Sen. Bob Kerrey (Neb.), a member of the Sept. 11 presidential commission.
The missed chances were:
In December 1998, intelligence suggested bin Laden was at a location in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Missile strikes were prepared, but Clinton's advisers decided not to recommend a launch because no one had seen bin Laden for a couple of hours.
Intelligence reports put bin Laden near a hunting camp in rural Afghanistan with princes from the United Arab Emirates in February 1999 - but Clinton policymakers worried that a strike might kill one of the princes or other officials. A CIA official called the incident "a lost opportunity to kill bin Laden before 9/11."
Again in Kandahar, in May 1999, sources reported bin Laden's location over five nights - but there was no attack because of doubts about intelligence and the "risk of collateral damage."
In a fourth instance, in July 1999, the intelligence was too sketchy to support a strike.
The revelations about U.S. inaction sparked charges at yesterday's hearing of the Sept. 11 commission that several golden opportunities were blown to nail the world's terror mastermind.
"From 1993, when the World Trade Center was hit the first time, through September 2001, al Qaeda never suffered a military response from us, other than Aug. 20th," said Kerrey, referring to the missile strikes against Sudan and Afghanistan in 1998.
Clinton has agreed to talk privately with commission leaders, but hasn't done so yet. He and President Bush refuse to testify before the commission publicly.
So, Clinton had eight years and at least three chances to get Bin Laden and he didn't...but Bush is the one who could have prevented 9/11?
