Posted on 05/18/2004 2:17:21 PM PDT by Brilliant
NEW YORK - The former police and fire chiefs who were lionized after the World Trade Center attack came under harsh criticism Tuesday from the Sept. 11 commission, with one member saying the departments' lack of cooperation was scandalous and "not worthy of the Boy Scouts."
Former fire commissioner Thomas Von Essen and former police chief Bernard Kerik shot back with infuriated responses to John Lehman's questions, the strongest of a series of pointed statements from the panel.
"I couldn't disagree with you more strongly," Von Essen replied. "I think it's outrageous that you make a statement like that." Outside the hearing, he called the questioning "despicable."
Families of Sept. 11 victims applauded the tough questioning and shook their heads sadly as the panel enumerated a litany of communication breakdowns between the fire and police departments. Some wept as they watched videotape of the buildings collapsing.
As Von Essen testified, Sally Regenhard — who lost her firefighter son — held up a piece of paper reading: "LIES."
The heated exchanges occurred at the start of a two-day hearing held 1 1/2 miles from ground zero. The 10-member bipartisan panel has been holding hearings over the last year, including high-profile meetings in Washington last month about intelligence failures, to examine what led to the attacks and determine ways to avoid future attacks. The panel will issue its final report July 26.
While the New York hearings were meant to examine problems in the city's emergency response system, officials also were asked about what they knew about terrorism threats in the months before the attacks.
The former director of the World Trade Center told the commission that he knew nothing of Osama bin Laden's terror network until the summer before the attacks, and was never privy to FBI intelligence that Islamic terrorists might hijack U.S. planes.
Alan Reiss said he first heard about bin Laden's al-Qaida network when ex-FBI agent John O'Neill was hired in the summer of 2001 as head of security at the trade center. O'Neill, who had hunted bin Laden for years, was one of the 2,749 people killed in the attack.
"I was aware of the plot against some of the other Port Authority tunnels and the U.N.," Reiss testified. "But we were never briefed" by the FBI.
Reiss also said he was more focused on fending off possible bioterrorism attacks such as anthrax, spending more than $100,000 to protect the building from such an assault.
"We felt this (anthrax) was the next coming wave," he said. "We had developed plans on how to isolate the air conditioning system and shut it down but never did we have a thought of what happened on 9-11."
Reiss bristled under questioning from commission member Bob Kerrey, who asked him if he is angry that "things might have been different had they (FBI) trusted you enough" to deliver important intelligence.
Reiss said he was not angry at the FBI, but rather at "19 people in an airplane," referring to the hijackers.
Kerrey said he shared Reiss' anger. "These 19 people ... defeated the INS, they defeated the Customs (Department), they defeated the FBI, they defeated the CIA," the former Nebraska senator said as family members of the victims chimed in with the loudest applause of the morning.
But Kerrey said he was more concerned that "we may not be delivering the key intelligence, the facts, the information" to the first responders.
Later, family members cheered when commission member Slade Gorton launched an aggressive line of questioning about the city's 911 emergency system to Kerik, Von Essen and Richard Sheirer, former Office of Emergency Management commissioner.
When the agency heads tried to defer to their successors, Gorton refused to let them. "I'm asking ... what was going on Sept. 11," Gorton said to applause from the families.
For some family members, it was a day for reflection rather than protest. Terry McGovern, whose mother died in the south tower, said she came away with an understanding of what happened that day.
"For me, it was reliving what my mother heard, what she saw, what her last moments were," McGovern said.
The hearing began with a commission report recounting how city officials were forced to make life-and-death decisions based on incomplete communications, leading to some of the deaths in the twin 110-story buildings.
The communication problems resulted in incidents such as the deaths of Port Authority workers told to wait for help on the 64th floor of one tower. Many of them died when the building collapsed.
Communications breakdowns also prevented announcements to evacuate from reaching civilians in one of the buildings. One survivor recounted calling 911 from the 44th floor of the south tower, only to be placed on hold twice.
That was not a surprise, since emergency operators had a "lack of awareness" about what was happening at the twin towers and were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of calls, said commission staffer Sam Casperson.
cyncooper - I'm so upset I can barely talk (or type).
I actually feel like formenting a revolution over this. I've never seen anything so disgraceful done by an American, ever. Ever. Ever.
Those pigs cannot stand that we were patriotic after 9/11. They can't stand that firemen and police officers were heroes. I'm sure they can't stand that our soldiers are heroes to us now.
It's a national disgrace and it cannot be allowed to stand. The silent majority has been silent too long.
Those men who lost their lives, their friends hav been treated in the most indecent manner possible.
Perhaps the panel members will get mugged in NY and no one will respond :~)
I was so mad last week,
I didn't think it possible
to be or to get any madder.
Boy was I mistaken.
The fact that disruptions such as this, applause, outbursts etc. have been tolerated are a strong indication of the vaudeville element of the entire commission and their effort. Used up, has-been ex-politicos crane their necks and move toward the cameras like moths to a flame.
These familiy members shouldn't even be allowed in the proceedings. I expect little constructive outcome from this entire exercise, which is a damned shame for all of us, especially the family members. It won't be worth the paper it's printed on, and at large expense to the taxpayers who have now been regaled with yet another performance of partisan theatre.
I'm just seeing that Kean and Hamilton will be on O'Reilly tonight. This 9-11 Circus is nothing more than another media promotion. Generating news for their own exploitation. And just as the Abu Ghraib story is finally starting to wind down a bit, now isn't that convenient?
Prairie
Well Dan, your vanity has merit.
Read the news here.
We need to organize letters to support. Letters of protest to the Commission for allowing the partisan nature of the families to shine through once again. They made darned sure they stopped that when Condi Rice testified, didn't they.
I don't think I've ever been this mad in my life.
Yes, GOOD idea.
Why is that Gorelick bitch still on the panel?
I am FURIOUS.
Good point.
No control, no decorum, no common sense, and certainly no decency.
After seeing and hearing just this bit of today's carnival, I ask why is the panel still a panel?
The whole lot of them are a disgrace.
Kean has stuck up for the arrogant, insipid, and corrupt Gorelick and never blinked an eye when her secret memos were revealed.
There is not one member I respect or will grant any credibility. Not one. I thought before there were a few. No more. They are all jackasses. Harming our country, IMO.
They ARE harming the country. And don't care in the least. This reminds me of nothing but trial-lawyer mindset and tactics. Find a way to assign blame, drag the witnesses through the mud (except for Clinton of course), and rack up as many billable hours as possible in the process.
Tearing the country apart? Who cares!!
Prairie
I agree.
All of 'em are worthless.
Truth is the victim here,
along with GWB, firefighters,
and every other decent American.
GD them all.
I wonder if there is anything we can do about this. I intend to call my Senators' offices tomorrow morning to discuss this.
And to learn that Keane and Hamilton are booked on Hannity and Colmes tonight?! Good God, who do they think they are?
The 9-11 commision sucks grapefruits thru garden hoses.
Yep. thats how bad they are. They have no shame at all.
The disappointment for Kerrey and company is that nobody seemd to have been prepared for a direct airliner attack.
The same story as before when grilling zeroed exclusively around who of Bush's administration is at fault not to have defended against such a specific attack.
The commission urgently needs to question Ms. Gorelick who designed the wall between FBI and CIA.
Without such barriers in exchanging intelligence between organisations responsible for national security this catastrophe could have been avoided.
Commission members stop covering up and protecting this culprit Gorelick.
History will come to this conclusion anyway, with or without your input.
I've thought of that as well. Their side of the country will have a big problem, though, because no one will have a job as they'll all be on welfare...but the welfare won't exist because it's obtained by standing on the backs of hardworking Conservatives. Fun to dream anyway.
Ditto. I don't vote for circus acts.
The commission seems to be attempting to portray the HEROES of 9/11 as bad people because they are more likely to SUPPORT PRESIDENT BUSH. Political witch hunt going on here with this so-called Commission on Terrorism in the United States and another one going on in the Senate with Wolfowitz being served up on the grill. (Did you hear Biden's 10-minute "QUESTION" to Wolfowitz?)
Foment a revolution is right! They must be held accountable, and that includes Fatarse Kennedy.
You can tell I'm angry when I use all those CAPS in expressing my point of view. :o)
Corragio, Miss Marple. I have a feeling that Rudy will not disappoint.
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