Think Progress

Pentagon blocks report on Saddam-al Qaeda ties.

By Matt on Mar 12th, 2008 at 5:39 pm

Pentagon blocks report on Saddam-al Qaeda ties.»

On Monday, McClatchy reported that a “review of more than 600,000 Iraqi documents” captured after the U.S. invasion “has found no evidence” that Saddam Hussein “had any operational links” with al Qaeda. But ABC News reports today that the Pentagon apparently doesn’t want the study “to get any attention” as it has canceled “plans to send out a press release announcing the report’s release and will no longer make the report available online.” One Pentagon official “said initial press reports on the study made it ‘too politically sensitive.’”

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109 Responses to “Pentagon blocks report on Saddam-al Qaeda ties.”


  1. J Says:

    too dammit


  2. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    Now there’s a surprise.


  3. Leftside Annie Says:

    Oh…so the truth is “too politically sensitive”…?

    Of course.


  4. missmolly Says:

    Huh? Are they SERIOUSLY afraid that word might get out about the fact that Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden had no connection other than mutual loathing?

    “Too politically sensitive” = We really f’d up and we’d like to bury that…


  5. hellinabucket Says:

    Will they make the report available at all if not online? Politically sensitive? Wasn’t a problem when the fearmongers were banging gongs and pushing lies but now the truth is available but it’s too “politically sensitive”.

    Release the report. Help spread the truth.


  6. MCMetal Says:

    “Too politically sensitive” means we’re just really covering our own (stupid) asses……………….


  7. toasterhead Says:

    I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that some of the information the Pentagon used to make the case for the AQ-Iraq connection was obtained via torture. Hmmm…


  8. MCMetal Says:

    I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that some of the information the Pentagon used to make the case for the AQ-Iraq connection was obtained via torture. Hmmm…

    Comment by toasterhead — March 12, 2008 @ 5:49 pm

    Doesn’t it also make you and everyone else wonder if those that are doing this are the ones who agree with Camp Chimpy and want to invade Iran , too ?


  9. Tired of being lied to Says:

    I paid for that report, and paid a lot. Release it. Now.


  10. Marie Says:

    The more we hear of the government under Bush, the more we should feel the need to kick them all out.
    The Pentagon, like Bush and his signing statements and vetoes, doesn”t like the report, so they squelch it.
    If they could “veto” it, they would do so. The effect is the same.


  11. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha.

    Comment by Frank M — March 12, 2008 @ 5:50 pm

    Well, it certainly has this one blowing smoke out of both ends simultaneously.


  12. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Got War Crimes?


  13. backup Says:

    “As recently as last July, Bush tried to tie al Qaida to the ongoing violence in Iraq.” from the McClatchy article.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_Iraq

    I believe that it is correct that al qaida is tied to the ongoing violence in Iraq.


  14. Dr. Matt Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha.
    Comment by Frank M — March 12, 2008 @ 5:50 pm

    You meant to say, “Releasing it would prove once and for all that the Iraq war was based on lies and that herr dubyah and the reich-wingers would be proven wrong….as usual”.


  15. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    Frank M sez:

    “Good. The Truth can only hurt our cause if it’s made public.”


  16. Badger Says:

    It is coming up on the 5th year after Bush launched operation “Iraqi Freedom”, and this report is FINALLY ready for release???


  17. texaslady Says:

    It should start scaring people that our White House deems anything dissenting their policy as too ” politically sensitive”.
    They have their own journalists, talking heads, and just a few own all the media. Any and all questioning is called conspiracy nutjobs, yet how can truth come out without questions ?


  18. MCMetal Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha.

    Comment by Frank M — March 12, 2008 @ 5:50 pm

    Yeah

    We can’t possibly have the GOP be exposed as a group of liars ; especially seeing as how McSenile is attempting to run upon this illegal invasion and occupation as being “righteous” ………….


  19. AMcG773 Says:

    Why should the Pentagon be concerned with politics? I don’t think that’s part of their job.


  20. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    Frank wants the Truth kept hooded and bound. Maybe with electrodes clamped to its genitals too.


  21. texaslady Says:

    Frank M - I like political broohaha, it makes me think. Guess you like others to make up your mind.


  22. MCMetal Says:

    One Pentagon official “said initial press reports on the study made it ‘too politically sensitive.’”

    Got Bullshit ?


  23. Dr. Matt Says:

    Facts = “political broohaha” in reich-wing land. Brilliant….


  24. backup Says:

    “While the documents reveal no Saddam-al Qaida links, they do show that Saddam and his underlings were willing to use terrorism against enemies of the regime and had ties to regional and global terrorist groups, the officials said.” also from McClatchy article.


  25. OsirisHusseinOsiris Says:

    At what point does “cherry-picking facts” become a lie? This administration cherry picked facts from day one and are still doing it.

    At what point, do the people demand the removal from office of this gang of thugs?


  26. Louis Says:

    Can you say, “Dick Cheney?”


  27. OsirisHusseinOsiris Says:

    #26 And so??? So what?? No AQ connection whatsoever.


  28. OsirisHusseinOsiris Says:

    #26 And how is that any different than what we’re doing right now in arming the Shiites and the Sunnis???? Please enlighten me.


  29. StratRat Says:

    While the documents reveal no Saddam-al Qaida links, they do show that Saddam and his underlings were willing to use terrorism against enemies of the regime and had ties to regional and global terrorist groups, the officials said.” also from McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup

    And this is the reason we are spending $300 Million A DAY? Does that sound like a good balance to anybody?


  30. Juan C. Says:

    But you know that Exley reviewed 600,001 documents about Saddam-Al Qaeda, that’s how he still thinks those two had to do with each other.

    Also do you remember when those WMDs appeared in Iraq? I was so embarrased?

    ;)


  31. CitiDC Says:

    Paper copies only, huh? That sounds really wasteful. And what an ironic juxtaposition, as only about a month ago…

    …the White House announced it was releasing the 2009 budget in electronic form only — unless someone wants to cough up $213 for a printed version…

    Remember that? No free copies for Congress? All in the name of efficiency? Cost savings?

    Remember that grinning shot of George W. holding the video screen?

    Really. They stopped trying long ago.


  32. MCMetal Says:

    “While the documents reveal no Saddam-al Qaida links, they do show that Saddam and his underlings were willing to use terrorism against enemies of the regime and had ties to regional and global terrorist groups, the officials said.” also from McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 5:56 pm

    Nice to see the documents reveal that Saddam knew Chimpy was his enemy and a terrorist , too…….


  33. OsirisHusseinOsiris Says:

    Badger: Yes, sadly - they sat on it, hid it, and are now trying to squelch it’s release. Won’t work any more. The sick truth has been unveiled and we now now, without equiovocation, that this war was totally illegal and based on Bush’s lies.


  34. Juan C. Says:

    And so??? So what?? No AQ connection whatsoever.
    Comment by OsirisHusseinOsiris

    Hey, hey. When in doubt, just bomb.


  35. Dr. Matt Says:

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 5:56 pm

    So, because someone is “willing” to do something, their country should be invaded and they should be murdered? Is it illegal to be “willing” to do something now?


  36. specialist f Says:

    Comment by Dr. Matt
    “Facts have a liberal bias”-Stephen Colbert.
    I have to believe Frank M is the king of satire. Otherwise it would make me wonder, being that stupid, how he dresses himself,or wipes his butt,or remembers to breathe,ect.


  37. backup Says:

    “According to the State Department’s annual report on global terrorism for 2002 — the last before the Iraq invasion — Saddam supported the militant Islamic group Hamas in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a radical, Syrian-based terrorist group.”

    also from the McClatchy article.


  38. joe cantwell Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha.

    Comment by Frank M — March 12, 2008 @ 5:50 pm

    got dumb?


  39. Dr. Matt Says:

    *No ties between Saddam and al Qaeda.*

    That’s gotta hurt, reich-wingers.


  40. regular_joe Says:

    One Pentagon official “said initial press reports on the study made it ‘too politically sensitive.’”

    Or perhaps it’s because the report is embarrassing to Republicans?

    Nah! Everyone knows you can’t embarrass Republicans. Being proven wrong only makes them to shout their propaganda louder.


  41. katy HUSSEIN katy Says:

    well, now it’s up to mcclatchy to get out as much as they can.

    and NOW.


  42. specialist f Says:

    Comment by backup
    So we should invade Saudi-Arabia next right???Concern troll?It’s not very bright.


  43. joe cantwell Says:

    That’s gotta hurt, reich-wingers.

    Comment by Dr. Matt — March 12, 2008 @ 6:04 pm

    unless you’re the kind reich-winger that doesn’t read…

    frank feel free to go ahead and jump in here anytime.


  44. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    “According to the State Department’s annual report on global terrorism for 2002 — the last before the Iraq invasion — Saddam supported the militant Islamic group Hamas in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a radical, Syrian-based terrorist group.”

    also from the McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:03 pm

    Again, how does any of this relate to Bush’s decision to invade Iraq?

    Were any of those groups credible threats to the US?

    You want us to admit that Saddam was a bad guy? Okay, we admit it. Saddam was a bad guy who did evil things to his own people.

    Is that the standard by which we should measure our need to make war?


  45. JMOHR Says:

    Get with the program. Just one person needs to obtain the CD copy of this report, overnight it to Thinkprogress (or e-mail it) and it goes up on line. This is the most dramatic and effective response. Indeed send copies to as may progressive sites as possible. Don’t sit back and whine.


  46. Bob Says:

    It’s easier to be vindicated in the future if you squash the truth now.


  47. Dr. Matt Says:

    Get with the program. Just one person needs to obtain the CD copy of this report, overnight it to Thinkprogress (or e-mail it) and it goes up on line. This is the most dramatic and effective response. Indeed send copies to as may progressive sites as possible. Don’t sit back and whine.
    Comment by JMOHR — March 12, 2008 @ 6:09 pm


    http://abcnews.go.com/ images/ Politics/ Saddam%20and%20Terrorism%20Redaction%20EXSUM%20Extract.pdf


  48. tombaker Says:

    they think they can “unring” bells now??

    good luck with that, fellas.


  49. robbez_92107 Says:

    Oooooh - ooooooh - I know this one.

    Executive privilege, right? Just like the murder of Pat Tillman.


  50. Nevar Says:

    Don’t sit back and whine.

    Comment by JMOHR

    We’re on it!


  51. had enough Says:

    We the People have the absolute right to the real facts….we pay their salary… they are OUR employees.


  52. texaslady Says:

    #39 - What you are missing is THAT ALL THE FACTS were not given to the public or Congress. Just the ones that Cheney and Bush wanted seen. And they made up facts to fit the agenda.
    But, hey look who from America was gladhanding Saddam before .
    Each administration promotes whoever is in power that meets their agenda.


  53. Buckie Boy Says:

    You mean Deserter Bush, Five Deferments Dick, Shoe Shopping Condi lied to us about Saddam and al Qaeda ties?

    Maybe they meant Saddam had al Qaeda neck ties, stripes, pasley, pokadots, solids.

    He sure didn’t like the last neck tie he was wearing, that’s for sure.

    Buck Hussein Fush


  54. backup Says:

    Here’s part of what Bush actually said at the time:

    “And that is the source of our urgent concern about Saddam Hussein’s links to international terrorist groups. Over the years, Iraq has provided safe haven to terrorists such as Abu Nidal, whose terror organization carried out more than 90 terrorist attacks in 20 countries that killed or injured nearly 900 people, including 12 Americans. Iraq has also provided safe haven to Abu Abbas, who was responsible for seizing the Achille Lauro and killing an American passenger. And we know that Iraq is continuing to finance terror and gives assistance to groups that use terrorism to undermine Middle East peace. ”

    “We know that Iraq and the al Qaeda terrorist network share a common enemy — the United States of America. We know that Iraq and al Qaeda have had high-level contacts that go back a decade. Some al Qaeda leaders who fled Afghanistan went to Iraq. These include one very senior al Qaeda leader who received medical treatment in Baghdad this year, and who has been associated with planning for chemical and biological attacks. We’ve learned that Iraq has trained al Qaeda members in bomb-making and poisons and deadly gases. And we know that after September the 11th, Saddam Hussein’s regime gleefully celebrated the terrorist attacks on America.”

    Here’s the link:

    http://www.whitehouse.gov/ news/ releases/ 2002/ 10/ 20021007-8.html

    And here’s Hillary Clinton after 8 years in the White House (and supposed significant insight into the situation) in lock step with Bush (at the time):

    http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=2_KEWUU33Lg&feature=related


  55. texaslady Says:

    “politically sensitive” = more embarrassment for the administration.


  56. robbez_92107 Says:

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:15 pm

    Good thing we’ll be rid of them both when President Obama gets elected.


  57. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:15 pm

    Please, backup, do you have a point to make?

    What does any of this have to do with the Pentagon’s refusal to release a report that found no operational link between Saddam and al Quaeda?


  58. krazeeinjun Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha.

    Comment by Frank M — March 12, 2008 @ 5:50 pm

    By “useless”, Frank means — why seek the truth about George and Dick lying our nation into a needless Middle-east oil war which has killed thousands of American soldiers, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi’s, destroyed Iraq’s infrastructure and instigated an internal Iraqi civil war, decimated the readiness of America’s military to respond to other global conflicts, handed out no-bid Iraq support and reconstruction contracts like candy to chiseling, corrupt war profiteers like KBR and Halliburton, robbed blind our country’s national treasury, committed treason in the outing of a CIA operative as political payback, lied and covered up the true costs of their war, and poisoned the ranks of the Pentagon and State Department with their neo-con, war-mongering lackeys who will be nothing but pliant tools in the Bushista’s insane pursuit of starting yet another war with Iran.

    And yet to Frank and his ilk, it’s all just an annoying distraction, water under the bridge, and any attempt to shed any light on the criminals and their criminal activity is just partisan politics.

    This report is simply the final crossing of the t’s and dotting of the i’s on what those of us in the reality-based community have long, long known — the Bush administration used the terrorist attacks of 9/11 as a convenient excuse to lie America into a bloody quagmire with no end in sight and which was simply a first step in a neo-con wet dream of reshaping the Middle-east to their own warped world view and to do it with alot of bombs and bullets if need be. End of story.

    Just saying . . .


  59. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    “politically sensitive” = more embarrassment for the administration.

    Comment by texaslady — March 12, 2008 @ 6:17 pm

    Yeah. They’re getting sensitive about constantly being embarrassed.


  60. texaslady Says:

    Republicans were apologizing to Condi for having to see anti-war protestors with red on their pink shirts, carrying signs saying murderer. It’s about time these people hear and see what 80% of Americans think about their actions based on lies.


  61. texaslady Says:

    #56 - backup - so where did you serve in Afganistan or Iraq? Since you are so proud of your leader .


  62. Dr. Matt Says:

    President Bush yesterday defended his assertions that there was a relationship between Saddam Hussein’s Iraq and Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda, putting him at odds with this week’s finding of the bipartisan Sept. 11 commission.

    “The reason I keep insisting that there was a relationship between Iraq and Saddam and al Qaeda: because there was a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda,” Bush said after a Cabinet meeting.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/ articles/ A50679-2004Jun17.html

    OOPS!!!!!!!!!


  63. katy HUSSEIN katy Says:

    obviously i overreacted, didn’t read throught the thing…

    but, just heard on rachel, there will be a CD available -
    via snail mail, when they get around to it…

    wouldn’t it be way cheaper to make it available online?
    SOMEone will put it online anyway…


  64. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    Apparently, when mando stated so affirmatively that Columbus sailed to the west in order to defeat an enemy in the east, it was just an attempt to convince itself that, if it believed hard enough, the fantasy could come true.


  65. RUCerious Says:

    From Chicken Little

    “What were we talking about”? **walking away, whistling…**



  66. RUCerious Says:

    It is available online.

    On your outdoor laundry line. Just hang a note on your outdoor clothes drying line, and eventually a copy will be delivered by carrier crow.


  67. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    sorry, #66 is in the wrong thread


  68. toasterhead Says:

    “According to the State Department’s annual report on global terrorism for 2002 — the last before the Iraq invasion — Saddam supported the militant Islamic group Hamas in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a radical, Syrian-based terrorist group.”

    also from the McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:03 pm

    None of whom are enemies of the United States.


  69. J Says:

    Meanwhile, the Bush Administration is backing terrorist activities within and against the government of Iran.


  70. texaslady Says:

    Hey backup with your staunch support of bushco where did you serve Afganistan or Iraq ? Perhaps you missed my asking before.


  71. Namtillaku Says:

    Who needs a report, there was plenty of evidence that there were no links post 9/11 and pre-invasion. Add to that the obvious that Saddam would never deal with AQ, as the last thing he wanted was to lose power, and the quickest way to losing power was to pick a fight with the U.S. That’s why there wasn’t any nukes or AQ in Iraq.

    I don’t need a report now to tell me any of this.


  72. toasterhead Says:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_Iraq

    I believe that it is correct that al qaida is tied to the ongoing violence in Iraq.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 5:52 pm

    Al-Qa’ida of Mesopotamia is tied to Osama bin Laden in about the same way that a Rolling Stones tribute band is tied to Mick Jagger.

    Come on, you can troll better than this. You’re not even trying!


  73. fletc3her Says:

    This is hardly a blockbuster. Anyone who has been following the war knew that this was the case *before* we even entered the country. Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda are not and never were in cahoots.

    The big news here is that the Pentagon is concluding what everyone outside of the Pentagon has known for several years. They are rejoining the reality-based society even while some parts of government, notably Dick Cheney’s office, are still making an effort to shape public opinion around their revisionist version of events.

    The Pentagon blocking this report is hardly surprising. This report undermines one of the primary reasons for this war. It is a huge embarrassment for the President, the Vice President, and all the military brass to have this stark denial of their attempts to mislead the American public published.

    I imagine they hoped that the Eliot Spitzer news would push this to the back burner, then were disappointed to see that this story was actually gaining some traction.


  74. fletc3her Says:

    The U.S. government has designated that any sectarian violence in Iraq is perpetrated by Al Qaeda in Iraq, therefore all sectarian violence in Iraq is perpetrated by Al Qaeda in Iraq. You’ll find that this designation is spelled out in Catch-22 of the War Authorization Act.


  75. flavorino Says:

    ‘too politically sensitive.’”

    Meaning; “reminds the American public that Bush and Cheney are liars.”


  76. texaslady Says:

    The Pentagon knew all along….otherwise they would have allowed the real intelligence to come out and Congress could have made a judgement. Cheney and Libby were nagging CIA everyday to come up with what they wanted to invade Iraq. Going to Afganistan with a token amount of guys, allowing Bin Laden to escape, and hurrying to their main objective….everyone now knows that, some just don’t want to believe it.


  77. flavorino Says:

    too politically sensitive.’”

    Or it could mean;
    “reminds the American public not to trust Republicans.”


  78. flavorino Says:

    “According to the State Department’s annual report on global terrorism for 2002 — the last before the Iraq invasion — Saddam supported the militant Islamic group Hamas in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a radical, Syrian-based terrorist group.”

    also from the McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:03 pm

    And who did the Saudis, UAE and the Pakistanis support?
    Why didn’t we invade them, jackass?


  79. Leftside Annie Says:

    *sigh*

    All this makes me so very nostalgic for the good old days, when the only lies being told were about blow jobs in the Oval Office…….


  80. texaslady Says:

    #81 - jackass can’t answer his blanket is over his head with his fingers in his ears, while repeating bush is saving me.


  81. Dr. Matt Says:

    “According to the State Department’s annual report on global terrorism for 2002 — the last before the Iraq invasion — Saddam supported the militant Islamic group Hamas in Gaza, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, a radical, Syrian-based terrorist group.”

    also from the McClatchy article.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:03 pm

    And who did the Saudis, UAE and the Pakistanis support?
    Why didn’t we invade them, jackass?

    Comment by flavorino — March 12, 2008 @ 6:51 pm

    How come dubyah didn’t simply invade Palestine and Syria?


  82. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    “We know that Iraq and the al Qaeda terrorist network share a common enemy — the United States of America.

    Comment by backup — March 12, 2008 @ 6:15 pm

    A common enemy? The US? Well Thank GOD we never gave Saddam anything dangerous, like chemical weapons… oops… my bad. Sorry.


  83. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    How come dubyah didn’t simply invade Palestine and Syria?

    Comment by Dr. Matt — March 12, 2008 @ 7:01 pm

    No… oil…

    Well, maybe olive oil…


  84. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Comment by Leftside Annie — March 12, 2008 @ 6:51 pm

    Well, in all fairness, Leftside, the WH won’t tell us WHO Jeff Gannon visited over 180 times…


  85. ralph the wonder llama Says:

    How come dubyah didn’t simply invade Palestine and Syria?

    Comment by Dr. Matt — March 12, 2008 @ 7:01 pm

    “Cause they weren’t “target-rich environments”.

    Kind of like losing a quarter in the parking lot but looking for it by the door of the restaurant because the light’s better over there.


  86. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Or like breaking into your neighbor’s house ’cause the guy who robbed you is actually broke.


  87. Owl Says:

    They had to do this, or guys like Roy Robison wouldn’t be able to print slosh called “Both In One Trench: Saddam’s Secret Terror Documents”.


  88. Hemlock for Gadflies Says:

    Why shoot the messenger when you can just kill the message?

    For those who want it, though, the truth will out. A good synthesis of the classified study can be found in the report of the Iraqi Perspectives Project which was conducted by Joint Forces Command and used the same document data-set as this forthcoming (?) report. The link below will download the document for you (it’s long — 200+ pages).

    http://www.jfcom.mil/ newslink/ storyarchive/ 2006/ ipp.pdf


  89. RUCerious Says:

    Oer the laaaaaand of the free…..

    And the home of the ……..wha?????? bamboozled?


  90. Bluestocking Says:

    ABC News reports today that the Pentagon apparently doesn’t want the study “to get any attention” as it has canceled “plans to send out a press release announcing the report’s release and will no longer make the report available online.” One Pentagon official “said initial press reports on the study made it ‘too politically sensitive.’”

    ****************************************************

    Translation: Even though we know that there was no link between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, letting you know that could make things — *ahem* — inconvenient and uncomfortable for us…so we’ve decided on your behalf that you have no right to know that.

    Typical Bush administration response — when the facts don’t go the way you want them to go, suppress them in order to prevent your opponents from confronting you with the evidence that you were wrong.


  91. Doc Rock Says:

    The information was compiled and processed with taxpayer funds and should be released under FOIA–politically sensitive or embarassing information is NOT protected under FOIA.

    “The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Title 5 of the United States Code, section 552, generally provides that any person has the right to request access to federal agency records or information. All agencies of the U.S. Government are required to disclose records upon receiving a written request, except those records that are protected from disclosure pursuant to nine exemptions and three exclusions.”
    =======================================
    Nine Exemptions
    Exemption One: Classified national defense and foreign relations information.
    Exemption Two: Internal agency personnel rules and practices.
    Exemption Three: Information that is prohibited from disclosure by another federal law.
    Exemption Four: Trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person that is privileged or confidential.
    Exemption Five: Inter-agency or intra-agency memoranda or letters that are protected by legal privileges.
    Exemption Six: Personnel, medical, financial, and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
    Exemption Seven: Certain types of information compiled for law enforcement purposes.
    Exemption Eight: Records that are contained in or related to examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use of any agency responsible for the regulation or supervision of financial institutions.
    Exemption Nine: Geological and geophysical information and data, including maps, concerning wells.

    Three Exclusions
    (c)(1) Exclusion: Subject of a criminal investigation or proceeding is unaware of the existence of records concerning the pending investigation or proceeding and disclosure of such records would interfere with the investigation or proceeding.
    (c)(2) Exclusion: Informant records maintained by a criminal law enforcement agency and the individual’s status as an informant is not known.
    (c)(3) Exclusion: Existence of FBI foreign intelligence, counterintelligence or international terrorism records are classified fact.


  92. Hemlock for Gadflies Says:

    Talk about An Inconvenient Truth!


  93. Bluestocking Says:

    Good. Releasing it would only stir up useless political brouhaha. — Frank M.

    ***********************************************

    Spoken like a true doubleplusgood Inner Party member. Thank you, O’Brien, for reminding us that Knowledge Is Slavery and Ignorance Is Strength…


  94. joe cantwell Says:

    no, gg, keltoi, ex-lax, et al.?

    well when the going gets tough…


  95. pete Says:

    no, gg, keltoi, ex-lax, et al.?

    well when the going gets tough…

    Comment by joe cantwell — March 12, 2008 @ 8:14 pm

    Who woulda thunk it? Our trolls are embarrassed. Priceless!


  96. alpuz3 Says:

    The big news here is that the Pentagon is concluding what everyone outside of the Pentagon has known for several years. They are rejoining the reality-based society even while some parts of government, notably Dick Cheney’s office, are still making an effort to shape public opinion around their revisionist version of events.
    Comment by fletc3her — March 12, 2008 @ 6:39 pm

    Yep. This has Cheney/Addington/OLC written all over it.


  97. John Kerry Says:

    The word is OPERATIONAL!!!


  98. specialist f Says:

    Why didn’t “backup” back up his big news. Good job slamming yet another poor pathetic troll Dr. Matt and others. You guys are right the RNC are getting what they pay for with these MORONS!What is it 5 cents a post now.


  99. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    And RIGHTLY SO!!

    Since the Bushes were advised by Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein,

    It is CLEARLY a case of EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE!!

    Or ELSE

    YOU HATE GEORGE W. BUSH AND LOVE THE TERRORISTS!!

    Yeah, yeah, THAT’S it!!

    McNRA McHussein McGun McNut


  100. questioneverything Says:

    I recommend that Waxman sends staffers to sit on the desks at every agency and look over the shoulders of the workers. Call for on site inspections. Get a list of who is hiding the truth. Then take them down, one by one. This is a violation of law. As is the coverup of contractors in Iraq.


  101. shaun Says:

    Pentagon blocks report on Saddam-al Qaeda ties.

    shortest report ever report reads : there were none.


  102. toasterhead Says:

    How come dubyah didn’t simply invade Palestine and Syria?

    Comment by Dr. Matt — March 12, 2008 @ 7:01 pm

    Does arming Fatah militants to fight Hamas militants count as “invading?”


  103. Chocolate Jesus Says:

    >We know that Iraq and the al Qaeda terrorist network share a >common enemy — the United States of America.

    the Bloods and the Crips have a common enemy..the police..this means exactly nothing as far as logical inferences that they are cooperative with one another..


  104. sashimi Says:

    I had lost the faith in the White House and people who are working there a long time ago. they lie about almost everything til today and this country can’t not do anything about it.


  105. A Patriot Acting Says:

    “All the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.”

    “Every war when it comes, or before it comes, is represented not as a war but as an act of self-defense against a homicidal maniac.”

    “War against a foreign country only happens when the moneyed classes think they are going to profit from it.”

    GEORGE ORWELL


  106. A Patriot Acting Says:

    “I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crises. The great point is to bring them the real facts.”
    -Abraham Lincoln

    “Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear.”
    -Harry S Truman

    “We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”
    -John F. Kennedy


  107. curmudgeon Says:

    “Not every item of news should be published. Rather must those who control news policies endeavor to make every item of news serve a certain purpose.”

    “It is the absolute right of the State to supervise the formation of public opinion.”

    “The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of it’s powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth becomes the greatest enemy of the State.”

    “The rank and file are usually much more primitive than we imagine. Propaganda must therefore always be essentially simple and repetitious.”

    The source for the above quotes — Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propagand Minister, 1933-1945

    Any of this sound familiar?


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