National Security and Intelligence

Dana Priest (The Washington Post)

Washington Post intelligence reporter Dana Priest was online Wednesday, March 31 at Noon ET, to talk about the latest developments in intelligence and national security.

Read today's stories:

Commissioners Eager to Question Rice (Post, March 31)

Dana Priest covers intelligence and recently wrote "The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace With America's Military" (W.W. Norton). The book chronicles the increasing frequency with which the military is called upon to solve political and economic problems.

A transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

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Reading, Mass.: Could you define specifically the term "chatter" in the intelligence field? If we can eavesdrop on terrorists and pick up "chatter", then why don't you hear about an arrest of a "chatterer"?

Dana Priest: Chatter is by its nature imprecise. It refers to certain targeted people in certain countries, maybe on certain internet servers or even certain phone lines talking, imprecisely, about things that could conceivably refer to terrorist plans. The volume of chatter, literally the amount of potentially relevant communications, has always been one indicator of heightened threat. "Chatterers" are terrorists and we frequently hear about their arrest.

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Jerusalem, Israel: What's with this story that the U.S. went to war against Iraq for Israel, to remove the Iraqi threat against Israel, and not for its own strategic interests? Any credibility to these claims?

Dana Priest: It's an interpretation of motives, and a much debated one, particularly in the Middle East where suspicion is high that most things we do are related to protecting Israel.

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Rockville, Md.: Clarke said that under Clinton ?terrorism was the highest priority.' Was he at the meetings where Berger and Tenet had a misunderstanding regarding Clinton orders to assassinate or capture bin Laden? If Clarke is right, and Clinton gave terrorism ?his highest priority' and Clinton still could not even communicate orders effectively to his DCI and NSA, why should America trust Democrats to keep them safe?

Dana Priest: Well, the easy answer is that Clinton is no longer president so the question is outdated. Both parties have changed their view of the world, security, etc, after 9/11. The more relevant question seems to me to be: what are they advocating now and what post 9/11 track record do we have to judge them on.

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Natick, Mass.: In January, 2004, in responding to Paul O'Neill's book, President Bush said "we were busy dealing with Desert Badger". At the time, no one knew what he meant. It now seems that Desert Badger was a plan to escalate the no-fly zones into a full-on war on Iraq by provoking Saddam into shooting at our planes. What impact do you think this will have on the current discussion?

Dana Priest: I love this question. My answer is: It could potentially have an impact if I can find out much more about the operation. So -- if there's anyone out there who can help, call (202-334-4490) or write (priestd@washpost.com). Thanks.

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Cleveland, Ohio: Dear Dana,
Do you know if the 9/11 commission is looking into warnings given to John Ashcroft advising him not to fly on commercial aviation during the summer of 2001? (This is a matter of public record -- Ashcroft has told reporters the threat was personal, not general.) The veracity of this claim needs to be explored.

Dana Priest: There's been no indication that the commission is looking into this, but it is certainly within its mandate. It is possible they have and we just don't know about it.

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Peachtree City, Ga.: No question -- just wanted to say that the Loeb-Priest live discussions are consistently the most interesting and informative things on the Web. Keep up the good work, and I'll continue to look forward to your pieces.

Dana Priest: Many thanks. Loeb, of course, is now on the other coast at the Los Angeles Times. But I'm sure he's keeping up when he's not bothering Arnold S.

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Portland, Ore.: It seems that Richard Clarke is going to give Sen. Kerry ammunition to attack President Bush's handling of terrorism, despite the fact that Kerry voted for the Iraq war.

I'm sensing an almost 1966-era Vietnam split in the country over the Iraq war. Everyone I know, 'everyone' (far left to far right) was for the war in Afghanistan and still is, until we find bin Laden.

But I'm seeing a pretty big split over Iraq, with folks on the left being fairly opposed and folks on the right supporting the president.

All this leads me to believe that handling Iraq is becoming more and more political (like Vietnam). Does anyone in the military feel this way? Is the clarity of the mission ebbing? Are deadlines in Iraq being driven by November?

Dana Priest: I have the same sense of a split as well. Polls show an increasing percentage of Americans question the war and the nation-building effort. Yes, as we near elections, much will be driven by that date. Yes, some in the military feel that way. I would say the "clarity" of the mission is not ebbing but the tactics and strategy for bringing about success are more and more murky and the outcome is not at all clear. I would not be surprised if the June 30 deadline for a handover is delayed or some arrangement is made to turn it into a symbolic handover while U.S. soldiers and Marines remain in charge of security and counterinsurgency.

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Dallas, Tex.: U.S. recently awarded MNNA (major non-NATO ally) to Pakistan. What effect do you think it will have on U.S.-India and India-Pakistan relationship? Can we really trust Pakistan with advanced weapons and planes especially since nuclear proliferations?

Dana Priest: Not much effect because this is largely symbolic. I doubt there will be a transfer of advanced weapons or planes. More likely, there will be a quicker transfer of counterterrorism-related equipment and training. India would back that effort, if it remains narrowly focused.

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Washington, D.C.: Is there any truth to the reports that members of the bin Laden family were flown out of country within days of 9/11?

Dana Priest: US officials say no. Many reporters and investigators are still looking at the question, however.

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Farmington, Conn.: Dear Dana,

It's been remarked that some on the 9/11 Commission and on various Congressional intelligence committees, who have access to all the documentation about Sept. 11th, have had their "hair stand up" on the back of their necks in reading this information. Do you know what they're talking about? Will this information ever be made public? Will we ever get to learn the full role of Saudi Arabia in 9/11 as long as Bush is president?

Dana Priest: Generally this refers to the kinds of hair-raising threats that existed towards the United States from al Qaeda. No, I don't think these things will be described in detail anytime soon, mainly because the campaign against Al Qaeda continues and disclosure could give away important information. I also would not look to the U.S. government to ever offer a full and accurate account of the Saudi support for hijackers, Al Qaeda or America-hating religious sects.

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Dana Priest: P.S. On the Saudi question: This relationship and the "blind eye" we gave to the Saudis pre-dates Bush.

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Omaha, Neb.: Why does the administration seem so inconsistent in its response to Clarke? Cheney says Clarke was out of the loop, then Condi says he was not. Rice says the "Iraq" conversation in the situation room never occurred, then she says it did but was misinterpreted.
What's going on here?

Dana Priest: One gets the impression that they fought back against Clarke with a first set of assertions and then, when that failed to dampen interest in him, they tried other answers. Inconsistencies arose in the mix. Flushing those out is the big reason the 9/11 commission wants Rice to testify.

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Midland, Mich.: Does the commission have the documents that Clarke wanted declassified? Specifically his Jan 2001 memo and the Sept. policy? It seems that comparing these documents is crucial to whether the administration was really engaged on terrorism in the early months.

Dana Priest: Yes but they don't own the documents, so they can't declassify them. They have said they will seek to have a limited number of full documents declassified, but haven't said which ones. You can expect information to be paraphrased or quoted within the final report (much like the staff reports that have been dribbling out)

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New York, N.Y.: Re: bin Laden family members being flown out: I thought Richard Clarke spoke to that during his testimony before the committee and said that, indeed, they had been flown out at the request of the Saudi embassy, and that none are on the list of those the FBI wanted to question.

Re: Iraq and the political divide: Do you think today's gruesome news from Fallujah will exacerbate the divide, will push people for or against the war, or have no affect? Many commentators are comparing it to Mogadishu. I find it more disturbing when civilians are involved.

Dana Priest: Thanks. I share your bottom-line feeling on today's events in Fallujah. Whatever Iraqis think of the military (liberator or occupiers), it's a really bad sign that they see civilians with as much hatred. In other words, Americans can do no good, in their eyes and their defeat and humiliation is worth all risks. Let's wait to see what the response will be, I'm certain there will be one.

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Chicago, Ill.: Hi Dana,
to your knowledge has anyone ever looked at the blatant inconsistency between these two items:

1. Rice's presence at the 2001 Genoa G8 conference with Bush (where the air space was closed and AAA deployed because of a bin Laden threat to crash planes into buildings to assassinate Bush and other global leaders) .

2. Her infamous "no one could have imagined planes as missiles" statement?

She was clearly briefed on this, I've got links to BBC and LA Times stories if you've forgotten about these threats.

Comments?

Dana Priest: Good question. There was also the Aug. 6th Presidential Daily Brief in which airplanes as weapons for al Qaeda were discussed. Rice had to back-track there, too, when the PDB's content were first revealed.

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Syracuse, N.Y.: What's happened with the Plame investigation? I haven't read anything about it in weeks. Is the story dead?

Dana Priest: Investigations take time. Even reporters have to have patience sometimes. The story is not dead, we're waiting for some notable progress in one direction or the other.

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Virginia: Dana -- This requires a ton of speculation, but I'm interested. A year after the invasion and 10 months after Bush's cynical aircraft carrier photo op, Iraq remains in turmoil, a half-dozen or so U.S. troops are dying every week and there's essentially no end in sight. At what point does Iraq truly become (without politically-motivated hyperbole)a Vietnam-style quagmire? Thanks.

Dana Priest: I think it already has, but on a smaller scale, given the number of US causalities suffered in both conflicts. But it's a quagmire because the violence is not abetting and, as events today show, hostility towards Americans is growing. US can't just pull out and hope things will get better (they won't) and they can't just stay and hope they get better (because they have not been).That's the quagmire. Time is not on our side, in this respect.

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Athens, Ga.: John Dean, of Nixon fame, is quoted in Salon today as saying

"While Cheney has tutored Bush for almost four years, and Bush is better prepared today than when he entered the job, Cheney is quietly guiding this administration. Cheney knows how to play Bush so that Cheney is absolutely no threat to him, makes him feel he is president, but Bush can't function without a script, or without Cheney."

Is this why the two insist they appear JOINTLY, and ONLY JOINTLY, before the 9/11 commission?

Dana Priest: That's the prevailing view from people outside the administration. I don't know if that's true or the whole story.

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Nashville, Tenn.: Do you think in the OPEC vote today that the Saudi's are trying to raise gas prices to punish Bush for not declassifying the last 20 pages of the Joint Intelligence Committees report?

They were pretty adamant that material should be declassified.

Dana Priest: Not really. Too much money at stake.

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Washington, D.C.: Dear Dana,

In light of both Paul O'Neill and Richard Clarke's testimony, as well as the public record of incorrect statements leading to the war last year, are you now willing to entertain the possibility that our government deliberately lied to push the country into war for other reasons?

What I have trouble with isn't so much your failure to explore this story, it's your refusal to even believe in its possible existence. You'd think reporters as bright as you obviously are would at least think it's possible politicians lie, rather than accepting, by default, that they must be decent, noble, and honest -- You'd think ...

Dana Priest: What I think is that you are ascribing too many things to me. This story is like an onion, the more you peel back the closer you get to the core. (maybe that's a bad metaphor, do onions have cores?) I'm not willing to make the leap to lying without the proof. And, of course I know politicians lie. I cover Washington.

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Olympia, Wash.: Why doesn't the media do a better job analyzing the political ads that both candidates air -- and making those who make them respond to the inaccuracies, false conclusions and even untruthfulness most of those ads disseminate? This latest gas ad attacking a comment Kerry made 10 years ago is a prime example.

Dana Priest: Well, The Post routinely truth-squads these ads. The articles usually do not run on the front page, though, so you have to go through the paper. Can't speak for television or other papers, but I think it's a basic responsibility of the media during campaigns.

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Washington, D.C.: Dana,

Exactly, what Iraqi government are we transferring sovereignty to on June 30? For the life of me I have no clue.

Dana Priest: Themselves. Right now, the U.S. is in charge.

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Arlington, Va.: Dana, do you think that the commission will come up with a unified group of recommendations, or will it be pages of Democratic views and Republican views? And, supposedly, Bob Woodward's next book will be less friendly to the administration than Bush's war.

Dana Priest: I would guess it would be more unified. They don't seem very partisan and they all know that to break off along party lines weakens the report's impact. I've heard the same thing on Woodward's book, but I have no direct or even second-hand information on that. Stay tuned. It's out soon.

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Bethesda, Md.: You said, "One gets the impression that they fought back against Clarke with a first set of assertions and then, when that failed to dampen interest in him, they tried other answers. Inconsistencies arose in the mix." See, to me that's called lying. It wasn't just "inconsistencies". People made mutually exclusive statements. Clearly, people are LYING. Why does the media shy away from the word LYING?

Dana Priest: usually it's because the word "lying" means that you are certain of the motive, which is to purposefully deceive. That kind of certainty regards high officials is usually hard to come by for reporters.

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Fairfax, Va.: Is it conceivable that the administration or other supporting organization could task a super-secret special ops team to "plant" WMD in Iraq and "find" them in, say, October? Stranger things have happened, no?

Dana Priest: I doubt it, but I know reports to that effect are making their way around the internet. Conspiracies are hard to keep secret, that's the first reason I think it's highly improbable. See: Key in Cake to Iran for Hostages.

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Dana Priest: And on that historical note (a reference to one of the more amazing revelations from the Iran-Contra affair), I'll have to run off. Chat with you next week -- Dana

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