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Whistleblower Warns FBI chief on Iraq
[Note: You will remember Colleen Rowley as the Minneapolis FBI agent who 'blew the whistle' on the fact that the FBI had several serious warnings about the 9/11 attacks in hand before that fateful day, and failed to act upon them. Ms. Rowley has once again stepped forward with this letter, written to FBI Director Mueller on February 26, which describes in detail her concerns about domestic safety issues in light of the looming war with Iraq. This letter covers a wide variety of highly important issues, but foremost among them is the dire warning she delivers to her boss: "The bottom line is this: We should be deluding neither ourselves nor the American people that there is any way the FBI, despite the various improvements you are implementing, will be able to stem the flood of terrorism that will likely head our way in the wake of an attack on Iraq."]

What is the FBI�s evidence with respect to a connection between al-Qaeda and Iraq? Polls show that Americans are completely confused about who was responsible for the suicidal attacks on 9-11 with many blaming Iraq. And it is clear that this impression has been fostered by many in the Administration. As far as the FBI is concerned, is the evidence of such a link �bulletproof,� as Defense Secretary Rumsfeld claims, or �scant,� as General Brent Scowcroft, Chairman of the President�s Intelligence Advisory Board has said? The answer to this is of key importance in determining whether war against Iraq makes any sense from the FBI�s internal security point of view. . . . If, as you have said, �the prevention of another terrorist attack remains the FBI�s top priority,� why is it that we have not attempted to interview Zacarias Moussaoui, the only suspect in U.S. custody charged with having a direct hand in the horror of 9-11? . . . It is not clear that you have been adequately apprized of the potential damage to our liaison relationships with European intelligence agencies that is likely to flow from the growing tension over Iraq between senior U.S. officials and their counterparts in key West European countries. . . . I realize that decisions to change color codes are made at the most senior level, but perhaps you can caution senior officials about the downside to alarming the public unless there is adequate reason to do so. Increased vigilance must be encouraged when needed, but the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Forces can easily get bogged down in attempting to pursue all the leads engendered by panicky citizens. This, in turn, draws resources away from more important, well predicated and already established investigations. . . . The vast majority of the one thousand plus persons �detained� in the wake of 9-11 did not turn out to be terrorists. They were mostly illegal aliens. . . . from what I have observed, particular vigilance may be required to head off undue pressure (including subtle encouragement) to detain or �round up� suspects�particularly those of Arabic origin. . . . It should be noted, however, that the Administration�s new policy of �preemptive strikes� abroad is not consistent with the Department of Justice�s (DOJ�s) �deadly force policy� for law enforcement officers. DOJ policy restricts federal agents to using deadly force only when presented with an imminent threat of death or serious injury (essentially in self-defense or defense of an innocent third party). I believe it would be prudent to be on guard against the possibility that the looser �preemptive strike� rationale being applied to situations abroad could migrate back home, fostering a more permissive attitude towards shootings by law enforcement officers in this country. . . . it seems clear to me now that the decision to attack Iraq was taken some time ago and you, even as FBI Director, may be little more than a helpless bystander. . . . Such an attack, though, may have grave consequences for your ability to discharge your responsibility to protect Americans, and it is altogether likely that you will find yourself a helpless bystander to a rash of 9-11s. The bottom line is this: We should be deluding neither ourselves nor the American people that there is any way the FBI, despite the various improvements you are implementing, will be able to stem the flood of terrorism that will likely head our way in the wake of an attack on Iraq. What troubles me most is that I have no assurance that you have made that clear to the president.

posted by LoZo 1:03 PM