Pres. Bush Backs Down, Agrees To 9/11 Questioning

In this digest edition of the UQ Wire:

1. THE BACKDOWN: Scott Mclellan Gets A Grilling On Bush, Rice & 9/11
2. THE BACKDOWN IS REPORTED: Bush to Privately Answer More Sept. 11 Questions
3. Former Bush I Official Proffers Insight on White House Stonewalling
4. This Morning's Papers: Calls For Bush To Talk / Draw Attention To Stonewalling
5. Rally for Bush & Clinton Administration Public Testimony about 9/11

Q Has the President agreed to take as much time as is necessary to answer the questions of the 9/11 Commission?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Bill, a couple things. One, I would like to start off, before I get to that specific question, and just talk about the unprecedented cooperation that this administration has provided to the 9/11 Commission, which is a legislative --

Q How do you know it's unprecedented?

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MR. McCLELLAN: -- which is a legislative body. And I think you can look at the facts, Helen, and I'm going to get to a couple of those in just a second, if you'll let me. We have worked closely and cooperatively with the commission. We have worked in a spirit of cooperation with the commission. The President strongly supports the work of the commission. If there is something we can do in addition to all the steps that we are already taking to prevent something like September 11th from ever happening again, we want to know about it, and the sooner, the better.

That's why this administration has provided more than 2 million pages of documents to the commission; provided more than 60 compact disks of radar, flight, and other information; more than 800 audio cassette tapes of interviews and other materials; more than 100 briefings, including at the head-of-agency level; and more than 560 interviews. We have bent over backwards to make sure that the commission has all the information they need to do their job. The commission chairman, himself, has stated that there is not a single piece of information that they have asked for that we have not provided the commission access to.

Obviously, as part of this, the President will be meeting with the chairman and vice chairman at some point in the near future. We are still working on the exact time of that meeting. We have discussed with the commission what we believe is a reasonable period of time to provide the chairman and vice chairman with answers to all of their questions.

Q Is that the one-hour time frame?

MR. McCLELLAN: That's what I'm referring to. And let me put this in perspective, though. I think, one, keep in mind, you're talking about a sitting President of the United States. It's extraordinary for a sitting President of the United States to sit down with the legislative body like the 9/11 Commission. But the President is pleased to do it. Certainly a sitting President has many great responsibilities to tend to; none more important for this President than acting to prevent attacks like September 11th from ever happening again on American soil.

The commission has already had access to all the documents and information they have requested, including our most sensitive national security documents. The commission has already visited with numerous White House staffers and administration officials. The commission is also looking at this in a larger context. The commission is looking at how these threats materialized over a period of years leading up to September 11th. We are talking about a period of seven or eight months, for this administration. So I think many of their questions have already been asked and answered.

But the President believes their work is very important. It's important to our efforts to prevent these type of attacks from happening again on American soil. And so he's pleased to sit down with them and visit with them. And we believe that -- obviously, you have to set parameters when you're talking about a sitting President of the United States. And we believe we've set aside a reasonable period of time. But the President intends to answer all their questions.

Q Even if it takes more than the assigned amount of time?

FOR MUCH MUCH MORE
http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0403/S00142.htm

President Bush will answer privately all questions raised by a federal commission investigating the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the White House said Tuesday, softening its insistence that Bush's testimony be limited to an hour.

MORE:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43010-2004Mar9.html

President George W. Bush's recent campaign advertising indicates that he is proud of his record on 9-11. If this is the case, Mr. Bush and key members of his administration have nothing to hide regarding the events of 9-11, including their reasons for ignoring repeated warnings by heads of state and intelligence agencies worldwide. Global citizens who support the United States through prayers, deposits in US headquartered banks, purchase of US corporation products, stocks and bonds, and use of US currency, appreciate that the value and liquidity all of these transactions of our time and money depend first and foremost on the rule of law -- in short, the value of the US government's word.

If Mr. Bush and key members of his administration are not prepared to provide open transparency about the events of 9-11 and their handling of it, then Mr. Bush's public relations conveys a false pride -- one that may have a devastating impact on the federal credit that is a linchpin behind American government, military and banking.

The Administration's testimony on 9-11 should be open to the public, it should address the unanswered questions put forward by responsible citizens groups and the 9-11 families and it should last as long as is required to ensure these questions are answered satisfactorily to all concerned.

If the Administration's testimony is not open and complete, we may come to learn through 9-11 that the emptiness of our word and the war profiteering afforded by secret budgeting, bookeeping and policymaking ---while useful to raising the largest campaign war chest in the history of our planet -- are greater threats to our national security than terrorism.

Catherine Austin Fitts
Solari [www.solari.com]
Assistant Secretary of Housing - Federal Housing Commissioner, Bush I
Former Managing Director & Board Member, Dillon Read & Co. Inc.

White House vs. 9/11 Panel: Resistance, Resolution
By Dan Eggen -- Washington Post -- Tuesday, March 9, 2004

[snip]
Stephen Hess, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said the jockeying between the two sides "has seemed almost scripted."
[snip]

MORE:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41468-2004Mar8.html

Bush owes 9/11 answers, not TV ad
Marie Cocco – Newsday – March 9, 2004

[snip]
And so I have a deal for this president. I won't ask him to pull the campaign ad off the air if he will pull down the iron wall he's erected between his White House and those charged with pursuing the truth.

The latest barrier is the president's refusal to be interviewed by the commission investigating 9/11 except under rules he himself writes. He refuses to talk to the full commission, only to the two co-chairmen. He says he'll appear for only an hour and only in private. Vice President Dick Cheney wants the same strictures.

MORE:
http://www.newsday.com/news/columnists/ny-vpcoc093700994mar09,0,6066158.column?coll=ny-news-columnists

Panel may force Condi chat
By JAMES GORDON MEEK -- DAILY NEWS D.C. BUREAU -- Tuesday, 3/9/04

[snip]
Rice's role in the commission's final report "will be limited because it was an interview that wasn't done under oath, and the President's is going to be limited as well," Kerrey said.
[snip

MORE:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wn_report/v-pfriendly/story/171784p-149871c.html

--Please join this Citizens' led effort to honor the 9.11 victims by demanding full accountability for, and answers to questions about, the 9/11 attacks.--

9/11 CitizensWatch encourages all concerned citizens and 9/11 victim family members to convene at the Stewart Ave (off Merrick Ave) entrance at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, Long Island at 4PM on Thursday, March 11th to send a clear message to the Bush and Clinton administrations that we expect them to testify publicly before the 9/11 Commission about the how and why these occurred.

What:
A rally in support of a full and transparent investigation into 9/11 demanding complete White House & Clinton Administration cooperation with the 9/11 Commission.

Where:
Eisenhower Park, East Meadow (Long Island) -- Stewart Avenue entrance

When:
4 PM, Thursday, March 11th

Who:
Concerned citizens and victim family members of all parties interested in answers and accountability over 9/11.

Why:
The whole world changed on September 11, 2001 and thousands died including those from over 80 countries. The world deserves to know the whole truth and seek deeper understanding. Americans must demand the truth from our government.

For more information please contact:

Kyle F. Hence
kylehence@earthlink.net

Check http://www.911citizenswatch.org for last minute changes or additional information.

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