I skipped the Bush part last night but it sounds like they played as I figured they would. Where the mini used every opportunity to make Clinton look bad it ...
Quote: 09.12.2006 "Path To 9/11" Tough On Bush Administration? Not By A Long Shot.
Like most people, I hadn't seen ABC's hotly contested "Path To 9/11" before it aired last night and Sunday (well, like most people who were featured inaccurately in the movie and had requested copies, and like most people who weren't right-wing bloggers and columnists). The information about its contents was documented extensively in a number of places, so I was well aware of the factual anomalies and flat-out fictionalizations relating to Sandy Berger, Madeleine Albright, and Bill Clinton. It was also widely reported that hey, the documentary was tough on the Bush administration, too.
After watching part two last night, however, I now know that that was not the case. On the contrary, barely two minutes into the final hour following President Bush's speech and the most jaw-dropping bit of spin I've ever seen occurred: They presented the now-infamous "Bin Laden Determined To Strike In U.S." briefing of August 6, 2001 as being a galvanizing force for Condi Rice, Dick Cheney, and the Bush administration, who all instantly recognized its significance. Literally, my jaw dropped.
Here's what happened on the screen: Wide on Condi in her office, reading. Foreboding music in background. She sees the title of the report: "Bin Laden determined to strike in U.S." Her brow furrows. She flips pages. The music gets more urgent. Intercut, we see a chopper move in Afghanistan. Time is of the essence. It's urgent. As Condi flips, we see what she sees: Ramzi Yousef. "Bring the figthing to America." We know she knows that. A few scenes later, she chairs a Situation Room meeting on September 4, 2001. She begins, no nonsense: "The president is tired of swatting flies. He believes al Qaeda to be a real threat, and he want to consider real action." She goes on to ask if the Predator is ready to strike, all business. George Tenet seems not to know, and seems lukewarm about the idea of killing Bin Laden. Rice is coolly for it, and says that it's legal. After all, she read the memo.
In reality, this is NOT what happened. At the 9/11 Commission hearings, Rice testified that the August 6, 2001 briefing was a "historical document" and not considered a "warning" : "This was not a 'threat report... [it] "did not warn of any coming attack inside the United States." Contrary to Bush being "tired of swatting flies," he was out in Crawford doing just that as he cleared some brush on vacation, ignoring the warnings he'd received and saying that attack was not considered "imminent." ...
What source did the conservative writer use for that one? The Blog
