ASHINGTON, Sept. 12 — The stunning loss of life in Tuesday's terrorist attacks and the sense, expressed by President Bush, that these were "acts of war," have freed the administration to broaden potential retaliation beyond the low-risk, unmanned cruise missile strikes of the past, military and civilian officials said today.
Instead, the options under consideration include more powerful, sustained attacks that accept greater risk to American forces, and may include bombing attacks by manned aircraft and landing special forces troops on the ground.
"The constraints have been lifted," said one military officer.
No decisions on retaliation have been made as American intelligence officials try to determine who is to blame for the assaults on the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon. Nor is there a timetable yet for any action, officials said.
For the first time today, officials said other options included calling up as many as 40,000 reservists, who would support homeland defense as air traffic controllers, engineers and military police officers.
"A wide range of military options has been presented to the president," said another military official. "It's a range from low end to high end."
Since Tuesday afternoon, Gen. Henry H. Shelton, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his appointed successor, Gen. Richard B. Myers, the vice chairman, have been consulting with senior field commanders in Asia, Europe and the Middle East to fine-tune military plans that could be carried out in a matter of days, officials said.
"My sense is, the president would be delighted to do something really tough and soon," said Brent Scowcroft, national security adviser to former President George Bush.
Military officers and civilian officials today pointed to Mr. Bush's declaration that America would "make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them" as a mandate to propose broad military options, perhaps carried out over days, weeks or months.
The targets could expand from the terrorist troops who carried out the attacks and their commanders and leaders, to include assaults on any nation found to have supported them.
President Bush met twice today with his national security aides to plot military strategy, and traveled to the Pentagon in the late afternoon.
"We reviewed all that has happened and began to make our plans for the efforts that we will be taking in the future, not only to bring these perpetrators to justice but to the punishment they deserve," said Secretary of State Colin L. Powell.
But Secretary Powell cautioned that any retaliation was not imminent. "We're far from selecting any particular military targets or how to go after those targets at this time," Secretary Powell said on ABC's "Good Morning America." "We've got to build a case first."
Early public opinion polls show that Americans overwhelmingly favor a swift and forceful retaliation, even if it means casualties, a sentiment shared on Capitol Hill. "Americans know now that we are at war, and will make the sacrifices and show the resolve necessary to prevail," said Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona. "I say to our enemies, we are coming. God may show you mercy. We will not."
Many people throughout the government have expressed frustration at the inability of past cruise missile attacks to wipe out terrorist cells, or even to severely punish them. But military officers have also clearly read signals from the political leadership and the public, desiring combat operations to be casualty-free.
Today, Pentagon officials said something fundamental had changed after the attacks, with civilian death tolls expected to rival America's worst combat casualties.
Placing troops in harm's way to retaliate against those responsible for the attacks, and to prevent further terrorist action, "now seems completely justified," one military officer said. "Our senior leaders are describing this as war, so those in uniform are willing to accept the risk. And we know the public will support us."
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld often notes that vexing and violent international problems — for example the low-level war with Iraq — cannot be solved without broadening the policy debate to successfully deal with the variety of forces that animate an enemy.
Mr. Rumsfeld often cites an axiom included in his booklet of "Rumsfeld's Rules," which quotes Dwight D. Eisenhower as saying, "If a problem cannot be solved, enlarge it."
During a Pentagon news briefing today, Mr. Rumsfeld hinted at the broader approach to potential retaliation, while noting the difficulty of combatting terrorism.
"I think that it will require a sustained and broadly based effort," Mr. Rumsfeld said. "And I don't think that people ought to judge outcomes until a sufficient time is passed to address what is clearly a very serious problem for the world. And it's not restricted to a single entity, state or nonstate entity."
Any military action carries political consequences as well as risks to the fighting forces, and there is never a guarantee of success, as the United States found out when it tried to retaliate against the Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden for the bombing of two United States embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
The Pentagon fired several dozen Tomahawk cruise missiles at Mr. bin Laden's training camps in Afghanistan, but missed him and his top aides. Another strike, at a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, backfired when information that Mr. bin Laden was linked to the factory was challenged.
Moreover, air strikes by cruise missiles or manned aircraft would not destroy the religious fanaticism that fuels many terrorist groups and could create martyrs, military and counterterrorism experts said.
"Air power is not well suited to respond to this kind of threat," said Gen. Merrill McPeak, the Air Force chief of staff during the Persian Gulf war. "You have to ask, `What's the endgame?' You want to come out with a safer, more secure environment, and it's not clear that a massive air attack, unleashing the dogs of hell, will result in an aftermath that's more secure."
Military officials say they are giving serious consideration to using American commandos, probably as part of a larger assault that would include cruise missiles or manned bombing runs.
The commando units, including the Navy's SEAL Team 6 and the Army's Delta Force, can be ready on 48 to 72 hours notice to carry out a raid on a terrorist camp — or to position themselves in enemy territory to await orders. Air Force special forces fly AC-130 gunships.
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