Osama bin Laden: missed opportunities [CIA had video of him in fall of 2000]

MSNBC ^ | Mar 16, 2004 | Lisa Myers

[The Raven]

As the 9/11 commission investigates what Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush might have done to prevent the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, one piece of evidence the commission will examine is a videotape secretly recorded by a CIA plane high above Afghanistan. The tape shows a man believed to Osama bin Laden walking at a known al-Qaida camp.

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The question for the 9/11 commission: If the CIA was able to get that close to bin Laden before 9/11, why wasn’t he captured or killed? The videotape has remained secret until now.

Over the next three nights, NBC News will present this incredible spy footage and reveal some of the difficult questions it has raised for the 9/11 commission.

In 1993, the first World Trade Center bombing killed six people.

In 1998, the bombing of two U.S. embassies in Africa killed 224.

Both were the work of al-Qaida and bin Laden, who in 1998 declared holy war on America, making him arguably the most wanted man in the world.

In 1998, President Clinton announced, “We will use all the means at our disposal to bring those responsible to justice, no matter what or how long it takes.” INTERACTIVE

NBC News has obtained, exclusively, extraordinary secret video, shot by the U.S. government. It illustrates an enormous opportunity the Clinton administration had to kill or capture bin Laden. Critics call it a missed opportunity.

In the fall of 2000, in Afghanistan, unmanned, unarmed spy planes called Predators flew over known al-Qaida training camps. The pictures that were transmitted live to CIA headquarters show al-Qaida terrorists firing at targets, conducting military drills and then scattering on cue through the desert.

[Yosemitest]

From Lisa Myers, what do you expect?

Check this ad out.

Two Kinds of Fear . I made it my workplace home page.

[johnfrink]

The irony: concerned about civilian deaths in Afghanistan, we did nothing, and wound up with about 3,000 of them in the U.S.

[Paul Atreides]

I'm so sure that Bubba will face any sort of serious scrutiny.

[MamaLucci]

Finally, some credit where credit is due for the Clinton Cartel.

[Dog]

Notice how they don't say it was Clinton......let you think it was Bush.

[oolatec]

And this comment:

[One Clinton Cabinet official said, looking back, the military should have been more involved, “We did a lot, but we did not see the gathering storm that was out there.” [/b]

Yeah, no kidding... incompetent fools!!!!!!!!!!!!

[oolatec]

And this comment:

[b]One Clinton Cabinet official said, looking back, the military should have been more involved, “We did a lot, but we did not see the gathering storm that was out there.” [/b]

Yeah, no kidding... incompetent fools!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lucky2]

The title reads like it was Bush's issue when in fact all the data revealed was before the election. I'd say clinton bungled this one and the blood of our 3000 plus citizens is on his hands, not George Bush's! Bush was only in office for 8 months before 9/11 for crying out loud!

[oolatec]

Um... I messed up my bold tags... :) :) :)

[TomGuy]

This report seems to be pretty damning to the Clinton administration. Has NBC news turned against the Clintons?

NBC News has obtained, exclusively, extraordinary secret video, shot by the U.S. government. It illustrates an enormous opportunity the Clinton administration had to kill or capture bin Laden. Critics call it a missed opportunity.

Was this the one that happened when Bill was too busy watching to golf game to be interrupted for something as minial as our National Security?

A Democratic member of the 9/11 commission says there was a larger issue: The Clinton administration treated bin Laden as a law enforcement problem.

Hello, John Kerry....been there, don't that, didn't work!

Clinton was weakened by scandal, and there was no political consensus for bold action

And the legacy lives on, still biting us in the butt.

[alnick]

“We did a lot, but we did not see the gathering storm that was out there.” [/b]

Yeah, those democrats are good at not seeing gathering storms.

[NYC GOP Chick]

[kcvl]

Clinton’s Loss? How the previous administration fumbled on bin Laden.

September 11, 2003, 11:45 a.m.
A Q&A by Kathryn Jean Lopez

Richard Miniter is a Brussels-based investigative journalist. His new book, Losing bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror has just been released by Regnery. He spoke to NRO early today about the run-up to the war on terror.

[george wythe]

A Democratic member of the 9/11 commission says there was a larger issue: The Clinton administration treated bin Laden as a law enforcement problem.

That's so European and nuanced.

I wonder if there is French-looking presidential candidate with a nuanced foreign policy ready to capture Binny Boy now.

[MamaLucci]

It illustrates an enormous opportunity the Clinton administration had to kill or capture bin Laden. Critics call it a missed opportunity....

Hey, you DUmmy lurkers...(and you know who you are).....
THIS is why your boy, BJ, should have had his mind on more
than poontang while he infested the Oval Office.
Tell us again how that was his private life............

[Ann Archy]

POWERFUL!

[MamaLucci]

That is just too good.

[oolatec]

Is anyone able to save the video somehow? NBC won't have it there forever... if someone can figure out a way to save it, and post it somewhere where it can be downloaded... that would be great for all of us....