Is the FBI doing its best to combat terrorism?

msnbc ^ | Dec 4, 2006 | isa Myers, Jim Popkin & the NBC News Investigative Unit

[Flavius]

WASHINGTON - Bassem Youssef is the FBI's highest-ranking Arab-American agent. He's fluent in Arabic, ran the FBI's offices in Saudi Arabia and is a terrorism expert. In fact, Youssef's undercover work helping to infiltrate the terror organization of the so-called "blind sheik," Sheik Omar Abdul Rahman, earned him the intelligence community's most-prestigious award, the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal.

But now, for the first time, Youssef is speaking out against the agency he loves.

"I don't believe that the FBI's doing everything it can to combat terrorism," the 18-year FBI veteran tells NBC News.

[montag813]

Is the FBI doing its best to combat terrorism

If by "terrorism" one means being a bounty hunter or a Border Patrol agent, then yes the FBI and the Justice Dept. are doing a fine job in combating it.

[cookcounty]

The FBI, like all government agencies is full of carrerists protecting their jobs. Plus their whole mentality has been solving crimes and getting convictions in court. CounterTerrorism is inherently pre-emptive, a whole different mission, bass-ackwards from what they are used to.

[Calpernia]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1674439/posts
3 Abu members linked to Korean kidnapping captured

[Velveeta]

My goodness.

We know more than they do!

[Dajjal]

We'll do whatever we need to do to fight Islamic terrorism -- so long as, you know, it doesn't involve, like, reading or anything.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16075305/
'Hardball with Chris Matthews' for Dec. 5
(the transcript to the Tuesday show)

BARNICLE: How much regress has the FBI really made since September 11? In an exclusive interview, the FBI‘s highest ranking Arab-American agent speaks out against the bureau, claiming a lack of expertise and critical skills is hurting the War on Terror.

NBC senior investigative correspondent Lisa Myers has his story and new tapes of FBI officials revealing what critics say is a stunning lack of knowledge about terrorism.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA MYERS, NBC CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bill Watson was the FBI‘s top counter-terror official before and after 9/11. But in this videotaped deposition, he seemed unsure of some very basic facts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know who Osama bin Laden‘s spiritual leader was?

BILL WATSON, FBI OFFICIAL: I can‘t recall.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know the differences in the religion between Shia and Sunni Muslims?

WATSON: Not technically, no.

MYERS: John Lewis was also a top counter-terror official for the FBI.

Does he know the difference between Shias and Sunnis?

JOHN LEWIS, FBI COUNTER-TERRORISM OFFICIAL: You know, generally, not very well.

MYERS: Was there any relationship between the first World Trade Center bombing and the 9/11 attacks?

LEWIS: I‘m aware of no immediate relationship other than it all emanates, you know, out of the Middle East, and al Qaeda linkage, I believe. Not something I‘ve studied recently that I‘m conversant with.

MYERS: Even FBI director Robert Mueller was stumped in his deposition. Was Mueller aware of that one of Osama bin Laden‘s spiritual leaders was the blind sheik, convicted in ‘95 for terror-related offenses?

ROBERT MUELLER, FBI DIRECTOR: Actually not—not with any specificity, in as much as that prosecution and those events happened in New York way before I became director.

MYERS: Counter-terror experts say such apparent ignorance of the enemy is alarming.

MICHAEL SHEEHAN, ABC NEWS TERRORISM ANALYST: And you absolutely have to understand the basics of who your enemy is and where they come from.

MYERS: Another senior FBI official claimed it‘s not necessary to have expertise in Arab culture or even in terrorism to lead the War on Terror. It‘s leadership that matters.

GARY BALD, TOP FBI COUNTER-TERRORISM OFFICIAL: The subject-matter expertise is helpful, but is not a prerequisite. It is certainly not what I look for.

MYERS: But an FBI spokesman says expertise does matter.

JOHN MILLER, FBI: I think today, you have both. You‘ve got the leadership skills and the subject-matter expertise.

MYERS: But why is Bassem Youssef, the FBI‘s highest ranking Arab-American agent, now holding down a desk job instead of working terror investigations? He‘s one of only six agents with advanced Arabic skills and one a prestigious award for a work on a terrorism investigation before 9/11.

(on camera): So you‘re saying the biggest problem is the FBI still doesn‘t have the expertise to effectively fight the War on Terror?

BASSEM YOUSSEF, FBI AGENT: Yes, I believe that is the case. If you can‘t get inside the mind of the enemy, we will never succeed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNICLE: Lisa Myers, thanks very much.

Steve Kohn is the attorney representing Bassem Youssef, the FBI‘s highest ranking Arab-American agent.

Welcome, Mr. Cone.

STEVE KOHN, ATTORNEY FOR BASSEM YOUSSEF: Hi, Mike.

BARNICLE: Why—why would your client stick with this outfit after all of this?

KOHN: He wants to fight terrorism. He was doing it effectively 15 years before 9/11. He wants to do it. He‘s actually sued to get into an operational position, and the FBI has said he has to stay in a desk job, in which he does not use his Arabic, none of his liaison skills, none of his knowledge of operational terrorism. Here‘s the number one—the highest ranking fluent Arabic speaker in FBI is prohibited from using his Arabic language. One of the guys on the show, John Lewis, actually criticized him for reading a document in Arabic.

BARNICLE: How many FBI agents speak Arabic? Do you know?

KOHN: At this point, there‘s I think 15 who could be considered fluent.

BARNICLE: Fifteen?

KOHN: Yes, in the entire bureau. Since 9/11, they‘ve not done any recruiting. But what happens is, why bother? If all you—if all the top officials don‘t speak Arabic, and you can get all the promotions without speaking Arabic, and the one guy who is fluent cannot get a job, why bother?

BARNICLE: What‘s the status in the timeline of the legal action here? When did you file? How long has it been going on? What do you expect to happen?

KOHN: Mr. Youssef met personally with the director in June...

BARNICLE: Director Mueller?

KOHN: Director Mueller and a Congressman in June of 2002, and said, I won the highest award for fighting operational counter-terrorism, the Saudi officials told Director Freeh they want to do liaison with me. I‘m the highest ranking Arabic speaker. I‘ve done it for years. Please give me an operational position to serve our country. And Mueller walked out of the meeting and he was retaliated against ever since.

BARNICLE: What did they say, in terms of it on a piece of paper, or verbally...

KOHN: Well, what they did was they‘ve constructed the most bizarre rationalization, which is you do not need subject-matter expertise to be a leader in the War on Terror.

And I said, well, what about a basketball, are you telling me someone can someone be the manager of a baseball team and not know anything about baseball? And one of their officials said yes.

BARNICLE: Well, what I‘m hearing from you is that your client isn‘t getting the position that he seeks within the FBI because he‘s being discriminated against because he‘s an Arab?

KOHN: Yes, there‘s no doubt—and you know what? They couldn‘t get

his name straight. They actually thought—there were like three people -

agents for FBI with Arabic-sounding names. They thought he was some other guy. They couldn‘t get the name straight. That‘s how bad it is. One Arab versus another.

They don‘t know what religion he is, they think he‘s a Muslim. They don‘t know if he‘s a Muslim or not. They don‘t even know that millions of Arabs are Christians. They don‘t know that.

BARNICLE: You said after he left his meeting with the director that he was retaliated against. What form did that retaliation...

KOHN: That‘s correct. They—they were going to put him into an operational position. Someone—he was complaining internally for ten months after—whatever it was from, September to June, he was saying, why am I not doing something with my skills?

They were finally going to give him a job. He meets with the director. The next day they pull it back.

BARNICLE: What‘s his background? Where did he go to school? Where was he born?

KOHN: He was born in Egypt. His background—essentially, he came to the FBI as a young man. There was—there were no Arabic speaking agents or very few, so they put him in terrorism right from the get-go, in the ‘80s. He saw it all coming right through.

BARNICLE: He‘s got to make friends with an FBI agent who went to Holy Cross or St. Johns, and then your job will be made easy.

KOHN: That ain‘t going to happen.

BARNICLE: Steve Kohn, thanks very much.

Play HARDBALL with us Wednesday. Our guests will include Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Right now it‘s time for Tucker.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

END

Copy: Content and programming copyright 2006 MSNBC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Transcription Copyright 2006 Voxant, Inc.

[Prost1]

Anyone remember COLEEN ROWLEY, FBI AGENT?

She had pre-9/11 info. The info did not go to higher officals.

She resigned or retired. Then ran for Congressional office as a Democrat!

How can anyone believe the FBI is protecting us when a former FBI agent signs up with the Party of Defeat?

[Smokin' Joe]

Thank You for the ping. Dear God! Is this just gross incompetence, or is this bureaucratic sabotage?

It sure seems as if agencies once dominated by Clinton appointees have been leaking and screwing up all over the War on Terror.

The net effect has been to stain the administration with their incompetence, while the agency bureaucrats (mostly) suffer no repercussions.

[Fred Nerks]

thanks for the heads-up Dajjal.

FReeper FRiends, #25 is a must read.

[USF]

“Not knowing these basic tenets is symptomatic of a lack of deep knowledge about your principal adversary, and that is unacceptable," says Michael Sheehan, an NBC News terrorism analyst.

Senior FBI officials argue on the tapes that it's not necessary to have expertise in Arab culture — even in terrorism — to run the FBI's war on terror. It's leadership that matters most, they say.

Sadly, this is just the tip of the iceberg of ignorance folks...

Things are just as bad, if not worse, overseas where even incoming CIA station chiefs often have less knowledge of the local culture, politics, and religious ideology than seasoned expatriates or their local contacts already there.

By the time they find they find their feet, open their eyes, develop an understanding and build the kind of contacts needed to succeed in the parts of the world where personal one on one relationships matter (their ties and trust are focused on the individual, not their title or position), Washington usually rotates them back home and then off to another assignment.

And then there are the problems of cooperating with foreign intel instead, relying on them (with their own agenda tainted manure) while we're still scratching our heads wondering why our own intelligence is not living up to expectations....

[sageb1]

Maybe they should be training directly out of high school.

[PLMerite]

"There is evidence from the KFC bombing that the FBI's own double agents were involved in it, and could not be trusted."

What, were the agents moonlighting for Popeye's ?


Sorry.

[PGalt]

Thanks for the ping/post. Thanks to all contributors.

[SunkenCiv]

KOHN: They don‘t know what religion he is, they think he‘s a Muslim. They don‘t know if he‘s a Muslim or not. They don‘t even know that millions of Arabs are Christians. They don‘t know that...

BARNICLE: What‘s his background? Where did he go to school? Where was he born?

KOHN: He was born in Egypt. His background -- essentially, he came to the FBI as a young man. There was -- there were no Arabic speaking agents or very few, so they put him in terrorism right from the get-go, in the ‘80s.

So, what is his background and his religion? This slippery lawyer isn't answering the question. If he's a Moslem, he can't be trusted with a burned out match.

[SunkenCiv]

Catastrophic intelligence Failure - Clinton's Bin Laden GATE
Accuracy in Media | September 24, 2001 | Cliff Kincaid - Reed Irvine
Posted on 09/29/2001 4:10:15 PM EDT by majordivit
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/535793/posts

Bin Laden plan known since 1995: report
AFP | Dec. 8, 2001 | AFP
Posted on 12/08/2001 6:50:17 PM EST by codeword
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/586531/posts

CBS 11 Investigates Whether US Was Warned About Terrorist Attacks
KRLD TV Dallas | 4/28/02
Posted on 04/28/2002 8:47:53 AM EDT by glorygirl
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/674174/posts

Why FBI missed Islamic threat: Agents: Clinton shifted counterterror efforts
WorldNetDaily.com | Thursday, July 25, 2002
Posted on 07/25/2002 3:06:35 AM EDT by JohnHuang2
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/721990/posts

Senators call for FBI bias investigation
MSNBC | February 16, 2006 | Jim Popkin
Posted on 02/16/2006 11:48:55 PM EST by Daralundy
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1580228/posts

[bayouranger]

Thanks for the Ping, USF. I knew about incompetence in most Fed jobs due to a stint as a PM for a private contract at a gov facility, but for an agent to actually put a badge on their chest every morning, look themselves in the mirror and to stand there proud without knowledge is disgusting.

Abysmal failures to the the American public.

They call it the Information Superhighway for a F'n reason.

They need a crash course with a very painful introduction to pain for a failing grade. Repeat until educated.

Take care,
BR

[longtermmemmory]

had professional dealings with the FBI once....

not impressed.


sad and scary.

I think the FBI sees the election of the Democrats as a way to get "turf" from the CIA. This is all about pushing pencils.

[Cicero]

At that time, the FBI had a number of Muslim Arabs supposedly working for them as double agents, to infiltrate potential terrorist organizations. As it turned out, the primary loyalty of these agents was to their fellow Muslims, not to the FBI.

Take almost any Muslim, and their primary loyalty is to Allah and his servants, not to the United States.

If you read the accounts at the time, you will pick up on the details.

The CIA also appears to have been involved. They were responsible for bringing in the son of a high level German politician, who was at Elohim City at the time of the bombing but was hastily removed from the scene.

Moreover, the head guy at Elohim City appears to have worked for the FBI. The place was riddled with double agents sponsored by the FBI, the ATF, and the CIA. Read Ambose Evans Pritchard for an initial account of this. He is one of the top reporters from the Daily Telegraph (UK), currently working as their financial columnist.

[longtermmemmory]

If algore or the clintons were in charge on 9/11, the FBI would have been handed this task of "solving 9/11" as a police action.

We would never have heard the name Osama Bin laden, and americans would have been bowing at the altar of the UN.

I think the problem is the problem.

The FBI pencil pushers see the terrorism problem as an issue they can own and use as a budget tool.

[PLMerite]

I don't disagree with you.

It was a light-hearted spelling flame (KFC instead of OKC).

[bayouranger]

A budget tool?

It always comes down to money...at least that what my x-wife says.

I'm overwhelmed by the arrogance that seems to proceed the infinite knowledge of the Feds. With all due respect, I appreciate their efforts, however misled they may be, but it's islam that's the common denominator.

Not that hard. See if they need some crayons, and any construction paper for class.

Take care,
BC