Sources: Pentagon Wants 'Able Danger' Hearings Closed
"WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is pressuring the Senate Judiciary Committee to close to the public next week's hearings on a former secret military intelligence unit called "Able Danger," two congressional sources have confirmed to FOX News.
Witnesses from the Pentagon are expected to testify at that hearing; that's why they want it classified. FOX News has learned that committee Chairman Arlen Specter's office is vigorously resisting the request.
Some former Able Danger analysts and Rep. Curt Weldon (search) say the formerly clandestine intelligence unit identified Mohammed Atta (search) and three other of the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers one year before the attacks that left over 3,000 people dead. They also claim that their repeated requests to turn over the information to the FBI were ignored.
Weldon said a former Army officer will testify next week that he was also ordered to destroy data that included reference to Atta.
"In the summer of 2000, he was ordered and, or, he would go to jail if he didn't comply," the Pennsylvania Republican said. "He was ordered to destroy 2.5 terabytes of data specific to Able Danger, the Brooklyn [terror] cell and Mohammad Atta. He will name the person who ordered him to destroy that material."
Other witnesses will include an FBI agent who will testify that she set up three meetings in 2000 between the FBI's Washington field office and the Able Danger, but each was cancelled at the last minute, Weldon said.
The Pentagon has changed its position on this story, from originally questioning the very existence of Able Danger (search) to now confirming that the Defense Department has identified five former members of the unit who all say they remember Atta's picture or name, on a chart in 2000.
Weldon wrote a letter over the summer that ignited a debate over what the Sept. 11 commission (search) probing the attacks knew or didn't know about the intelligence group, and whether it ignored evidence that would have helped shed light on the timeline of investigations into the hijackers' presence in the United States. The commission also has been criticized for not including the Able Danger project in their report last summer.
"The Sept. 11 commission's statement that it does not believe a secret military intelligence unit discovered a group of future hijackers more than a year before the terrorist attacks is "a total denial of the facts," Weldon said Thursday. "For the 9/11 commission to say that this did not exist is just absolutely outrageous. It's a total denial of the facts."
Well!
It seems we have the old fashion Mexican Standoff here. On this side is Weldon, his book, his absent chart, absent mind (except when prompted), and a cloud of witnesses that makes you wonder if anyone else is left working at the Pentagon.
On the other hand is that Sinister 9/11 Commission who obstantly refuse to budge!
"Bluntly, it just didn't happen and that's the conclusion of all 10 of us,"said Sept. 11 commissioner Slade Gorton, a former Republican senator from Washington state.
Well, well!
So why would the Pentagon want closed meetings? Who the hell knows at this point? The thing is so damn convoluted even if Gorton jumped up and said "All Right!" I had the chart, I got it from Hadley and stuffed in my pants!", what in the hell would it mean?
After all we already know that the Clinton Administration was a National Security slouch (criminally so) of whose actions led to the wasting of 3000 lives on 9/11. Yeah it would be great to get that out beyond the "conspiracy sphere".
Yet some of us think that is why they wanted the documents destroyed, and any others left over, well, Berger stuffed down his pants, was related to the 9/11 attacks.
Quite frankly though, I think that some people are getting off track a little. First, the assumption that Able Danger was set up to find terrorists. Yeah I know what Shaffer and others said, but since the beginning I found that hard to swallow, especially since it began under Clinton. What in the hell did he care about terrorist? He and his administration were all about keeping tabs - on US Citizens, specifically political enemies - that's what they cared about!
So simply put, in my humble view, Able Danger was a prototype data minining program to spy on CITIZENS. You know, like big brother. Hardly unknown or earth shattering in itself. But if found out would have had devastating effects on what is left of the Clinton Administration legacy. "I feel your pain".....
So..... maybe they took the program beyond it's original scope, got to playing around and began to identify terrorist networks. Weldon had mentioned as much in his June 27th, 2005 floor speech.
Further in the Fox Article:
"Weldon said a former Army officer will testify next week that he was also ordered to destroy data that included reference to Atta.
"In the summer of 2000, he was ordered and, or, he would go to jail if he didn't comply," the Pennsylvania Republican said. "He was ordered to destroy 2.5 terabytes of data specific to Able Danger, the Brooklyn [terror] cell and Mohammad Atta. He will name the person who ordered him to destroy that material."
Alright Weldon, then bring it on already! Cripes, this guy and his "trickle" witness list. Get it all out man!
The point is that if someone was ordering in 2000 to destroy documents, it would seem to me that it was to hind the fact that this program had specifically targeted citizens of the US or in Atta's case, resident aliens - both a "No, No".
It was hardly an attempt to hide the perps of 9/11, because it hadn't happened yet. So the reason for the destruction couldn't have been for that reason. Who would have cared who they targeted if 9/11 hadn't happened?
Missing dots here folks!
Cpt Ed. asks, "Why worry about whether this gets discussed in open session of Congress? The Pentagon now admits the program existed, that it mined open-source information, and that it identified Atta and others as al-Qaeda operatives. What they don't want discussed is what the Pentagon did with the data -- and what else Able Danger may have found. Some of that data, the part that focused on overseas threats, still exists and might still be in use. Col. Tony Shaffer made that clear in his interview with Government Security News earlier this month."
No problem at all unless there was MORE to the program, or most likely because of on-going "like programs" similar, but with different targeting going on right now. Like it or not, we don't need to broadcast that to the world at this particular time - hell we do enough of that crap now.
"Loose lips" they say...heh.
Either way, let's have the damn hearings, closed or open, but let's get to them and find out what happened.
UPDATE: But still going over it, Able Danger: Terror Alert given weeks before UUS Cole Attack
Holy Crap! AJ?
UPDATE II: I am going over the transcript of Weldon speaking to the press about Slate's comments, posted on a Canadian website (wtf?). AJ comments on it here.
From what I'm reading either Weldon is a National Hero crying in the Wilderness, or he's two fries short of a happy meal - I can't decide which one. But in this transcript he seems all over the place.
Besides, this question has been sticking in my head all along.
If all of what Weldon is saying is true, the big question is WHY in the hell would the Bush Administration want to hide this or the Pentagon? None of it happened on their watch. You would think that they would think it would be great to slam el-Savior Clinyon, and put the slam on Berger and Clarke and the rest of those crooks.
It doesn't make any sense unless there is yet (I'm holding my head) MORE to the story!
There there is just the chance that Weldon is a nut. But then there are all those witness - which even skeptical I cannot gloss over.
This is crazy stuff.
More at AJ Strata, Tom Mcguire, Captain's Quarters.
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