02-26-2004, 10:16 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Insane
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9-11 probe hindered by "Legislative Body"
Will we ever get a FULL investigation or will the "LEGSLATIVE BODY" here prevent it??
Quote:
White House's limits upset 9/11 panel
Length of interviews, access restricted
Philip Shenon, New York Times
Thursday, February 26, 2004
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Washington -- President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have placed strict limits on the private interviews they will grant to the federal commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, saying they will meet only with the panel's top two officials and that Bush will submit to only a single hour of questioning, panel members said Wednesday.
The commission, which has 10 members and is bipartisan, said it also had been informed by the White House that Condoleezza Rice, the national security adviser, had rejected its request that she testify in public about the intelligence reports she received before the attacks.
Democratic members of the panel said the administration's moves raised new questions about its willingness to cooperate with the commission, which is investigating intelligence and law enforcement blunders in the months and years before the attacks. The White House initially opposed creating the panel.
Republican congressional leaders have criticized the investigation's pace. House Speaker Dennis Hastert said Wednesday that he would block legislation that extended the commission's May 27 deadline, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"President Bush and Vice President Cheney have agreed to meet privately with the chair and vice chair but prefer not to meet with all members," the statement said, referring to the chairman, former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, a Republican, and the vice chairman, former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind. "We hope the president and the vice president will reconsider."
The panel said it was disappointed by Rice's decision not to testify at a public hearing, adding, "We believe the nation would be well served by the contribution she can make to public understanding of the intelligence and policy issues being examined by the commission."
Rice has submitted to several hours of questioning at a private session. Her spokesman, Sean McCormack, said the decision against public testimony was made at the recommendation of administration lawyers who warned of separation- of-powers issues.
"Based on law and practice, White House staff members have not testified before legislative bodies," McCormack said, "and this is considered a legislative body."
A White House spokeswoman, Erin Healy, would not offer details of the administration's reasoning in trying to limit the meeting to Kean and Hamilton. Healy said she was unaware that the White House had wanted to limit the president's interview to one hour.
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Linkee |
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