The Politics of Security

A few days before the sixth anniversary of Sept. 11, the notebook of Zacarias Moussaoui, a 9/11 co-conspirator currently sentenced to life in prison, was disclosed to the public. This notebook contained disturbing information that revealed how that tragedy could have been prevented.

Not reviewed until after the attacks, the notebook contained Western Union wire transfer numbers that authorities could have traced back to an al-Qaida agent in Germany and in turn back to an al-Qaida paymaster in the United Arab Emirates.

But wait, there’s more: tracing Moussaoui’s payments to these two would have led to the discovery of several other wire transfers made to 11 of the 19 hijackers.

But such extensive tracing as this could not possibly have been completed in time to prevent the attacks, right? Not according to Don Rigby, a Western Union official who testified at Moussaoui’s trial. He said the company could have responded quickly with the information had the FBI requested it. Law enforcement had 24 days to act after Moussaoui’s arrest on August 16, 2001. However, authorities issued no warrants and sealed the notebook until after the attacks.

Unfortunately, this was not the only time in the years leading up to the attacks that our government ignored al-Qaida. After al-Qaida attacked the American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, Bill Clinton tried several times to get approval from the Republican-controlled Congress to launch a counterattack. However, Congress repeatedly denied the president the authority to do so and even mocked him for being scared. Indeed, a few years later when Clinton continued to raise concerns about Osama bin Laden, most Republicans were more concerned about a woman named Monica Lewinsky.

One would think that after Sept. 11 our government would be more concerned with our nation’s safety than partisan bickering. The sad part is we have actually taken steps backwards since Clinton attempted to go after bin Laden more than 10 years ago. We have Dick Cheney and Rudy Giuliani telling us that terrorists will attack us on American soil if a Democrat becomes president. It’s not a possibility, but a certainty, they say. Does this really help anything?

When partisan hacking becomes so pervasive that it affects the state of our national security, everyone loses. We see this in Bush’s handling of Richard Clarke. Clarke was the number one terrorism expert in the country under Clinton. His expertise was indispensable after bin Laden’s followers bombed the USS Cole four months before Bush took office. Although he was willing to work under President Bush, Clarke was demoted. In January 2003, he resigned. The man who knew more about al-Qaida and bin Laden than anyone else had no place in the Bush administration. Although partisanship has no place in determining our level of security, Bush has yet to get the message.

Our country’s focus is now on Iraq, not on the group responsible for killing 3,000 Americans. With our troops being stretched thin and our war debt growing larger every day, the current administration has been unable to pay adequate attention to bin Laden. Our next president must be willing to shift resources from the failure in Iraq to the bin Laden manhunt.

John McCain was correct when he said bin Laden is “is a symbol, a force for evil. He recruits. He motivates.” The fact that bin Laden still has not been captured is very harmful for our soldiers in Iraq. We were wrongly told al-Qaida was there before we invaded. Since we invaded, an Iraqi version of al-Qaida has started and their presence there is increasing every day. We are made to believe this is part of a “war on terror,” but I have to believe that in some cave somewhere in the Middle East, bin Laden is absolutely ecstatic about the way things have turned out in Iraq.

It is much easier to turn someone into an extremist after they have lost a family member or friend in an attack, and this is exactly what is happening in Iraq. While Osama bin Laden may be limited to making videos, he is the Uncle Sam of Islamic extremism. Several reports by American intelligence groups have said that there are now more terrorists in the world than there were before the war, and it is easy to see why.

It starts at the top. Bin Laden must be brought to justice before we can make any gains in this so called “war on terror.” Our next president must be willing to abandon the false rhetoric and partisan bickering that has been a trademark of the past six years. After all, the security of our country may depend on it.