Frustration clear in Clarke book (interesting quotes)

USA Today ^ | March 28, 2004 | Judy Keen

[FairOpinion]

Books about public policy and the careers of bureaucrats rarely become national sensations. But Richard Clarke's Against All Enemies is generating intense interest far beyond Washington's Beltway.

Clarke, the former top White House counterterrorism official, says President Bush and his advisers ignored his warnings in 2001 that an al-Qaeda attack was imminent and were fixated on going to war in Iraq.

[FairOpinion]

"Clarke says his goal was to provide factual descriptions of important events, not to attack anyone. But he says Bush and his team "had no real interest in complicated analyses; on the issues that they cared about, they already knew the answers." If Bush is re-elected, he says, "One shudders to think what additional errors he will make in the next four years."

What I want to call Clarke is not printable!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Help out with this:

Poll needs some attention:

"Rate the 9/11 Commission so far"

Choices are:

Today's Poll:

Question: Rate the 9/11 Commission so far

	Useful to war on terror
	Partisan witch-hunt by Democrats
	Clarke is hero/whistle blower
	Clarke driven solely by his ego
	Shows desperation of Bush-haters
	Waste of time and money

I went with: Partisan witch-hunt by Democrats

Poll needs some attention:

[MamaLucci]

Describing Lynne Cheney, Clarke writes, "Like her husband, she was a right-wing ideologue." While in the White House bunker on Sept. 11, he says, she "was offering her advice and opinions."

But I'll bet this flaming a$$-hole just loved Hillary!

[GrandMoM]

Clinton, Clarke writes, had "seen earlier than anyone" that terrorism would become a major threat. ....YEA, but he was to busy with MON-KNEE-KA to pay attention!!!!

[marty60]

Wow, this guy has a real problem with women. Lynne Cheney happens to be a respected influential woman in her own right. It seems that not only was he pissed about Condeleeza Rice being NSA to Bush. He refused to come to meetings she called. and then apparently the guy that got the job at Homeland security was BLACK. He must have really been furious. Not only a Woman but a BLACK woman. and then a BLACk man gets the HLS job. He seems to be really pleased that Rice is getting the Clarence Thomas treatment. If the tables were reversed and this was a liberal Black woman and liberal black guy at HLS, the evil dums would be marching on the committee.

But, as I have always believed evil dums are absolute racist. especially where black conservs are concerned.

[FairOpinion]

I noticed that -- how does the wife of the vice president DARE to offer her opinions?! Isn't that just an outrage?
Especially under stress, in a bunker on 9-11.

Clarke is totally off the deep end.

(/sarcasm)

[FairOpinion]

I think Lynne Cheney has a Ph.D in English literature or something along those lines.

[Fledermaus]

So Clarke can't stand the reality that Cheny was correct? It is more trouble than it's worth trying to get the cowardly, corrupt French to go along with anything. And Germany, Russia, etc.

[FairOpinion]

I went with: Partisan witch-hunt by Democrats


Me too.

[Texasforever]

Clarke is the classic 3rd string quaterback. In other words he would be the starter if the coach was "fair".

[marty60]

She was head of some dept, but I can't remember which.

[leadpenny]

Richard Clarke and his book will fizzle faster than a wet firecracker by the 4th of July. He'll be a distant memory by November.

The more I read about him the more I think we should be thankful that he did not go completely "postal" and really hurt someone in the White House. (My apologies to all Postal Employees)

[onyx]

Post the poll on its own thread.

[MamaLucci]

Clarke is the classic 3rd string quaterback. In other words he would be the starter if the coach was "fair".

Perfect analogy.

[cinnathepoet]

It was an Arts and Humanities thing.

[Heatseeker]

Wow, this guy has a real problem with women.

I think you're onto something here. BTW here is Lynne Cheney's official bio. I have a friend who, before he switched careers, was a pilot and flew the Cheneys around for awhile back in the 80's. He said she is a very classy lady who was both intellectually brilliant, and fun to talk to.

[CedarDave]

In his book's 291 pages, Clarke comes across as impatient and sometimes angry with everyone who disagrees with him, including the CIA (except for Director George Tenet) and the FBI (particularly former director Louis Freeh). His frustration with Bush and Rice, who demoted him, permeates the book. But his respect for President Clinton is clear. Clinton, Clarke writes, had "seen earlier than anyone" that terrorism would become a major threat.

A picture is worth a thousand words:

[tallhappy]

Clarke is totally off the deep end.

Yes. I saw him today on TV for the first time and he struck me as someone on an off kilter misguided pseudo-jeremiad.

That he is making millions from the liberal media establishment doesn't hurt at all either. He'd never make that money if he wrote a book and pushed the line that he presented while in his position during the Bush administration.

People will say that his earlier comments that were positive about Bush and the administration that are at odds with what he is saying now are understandable given that he worked for the administration and he was supposed to present the positive, not negative. But that same argument applies a million dollars worth now to what he is saying now. He wouldn't get a book contract or consulting gig if he were not being so negative now.

[Howlin]

He described himself as "like Captain Ahab with (Osama) bin Laden George W. Bush as the white whale."

[Howlin]

You know what, in the beginning of this whole deal, I argued that discussing Rice's race in all of this didn't have anything to do with Clarke at all.

I think I may have been wrong.