Reports released from the White House say the Bush administration had been warned of increased danger of hijackings prior to the Sept. 11 attacks. Bush has received much criticism for not doing anything, but what could have been done? White House spokesperson, Ari Fleischer, said the appropriate action was taken based on the information received. "That information was so generalized, it did not contain any information specific to using airplanes as weapons, exactly what took place on September 11," he said. Steps were actually taken by the Federal Aviation Administration, Coast Guard, FBI, Secret Service and Immigration and Naturalization Service to prevent whatever would happen from the information gathered. For six weeks last summer, at home and overseas, the U.S. government was at its highest possible state of readiness against imminent terrorist attack, the Washington Post reported. The only thing found was by an agent who suggested the canvassing of U.S. flight schools for information on other Middle Eastern students. He speculated bin Laden might be attempting to train operatives to infiltrate the aviation industry, the Post reported. FBI criticism could come from this, but it should not be on Bush. The Bush administration could not have done any more to prevent the Sept. 11 attacks from happening. There was no way the threats received by the FBI were specific enough to even fathom what took place on Sept. 11. If the Bush administration had put the entire nation on alert based on the threats received, it would have caused unnecessary panic. Letting the public know about the danger might have stopped a few from travelling, but it would not have stopped the terrorists from attacking. The attack on Pearl Harbor could be looked at as an example for this situation. The U.S. had reports that the Japanese were mobilizing and planning an attack, but they didn't know where. Some believed the Japanese fleets would attack Midway Island, so the armed forces were warned and ready for the attack there -- not for one at Pearl Harbor. The U.S. followed a decoy threat to Midway and lost many lives at Pearl Harbor. If the Bush administration had followed that same tactic, more things could have gone wrong. Bush did the right thing by only warning the flight crews and staff. Any more reaction to vague speculations would have only caused the public to worry, and it might not have stopped the terrorists.
yes - no - abstain
