As President Bush leads his Pity Party over the success of President Obama, who reinstituted the CIA Bin Laden Group that he dismantled, restarting the Hunt for a man he first said he'd get "Dead or Alive" and "Smoke him our of his hole" before deciding "He didn't much care about him", then diverting the nation resources into a bogus unnecessary War in Iraq (now proven even more so by the tide of the Arab Spring) we also have to realize that credit should also be given to the first President to order the capture and killing of Osama bin Laden.
That would be President William Jefferson Clinton.
In 1998, in the middle of his own Impeachment, President Clinton ordered a missle strike against Afghanistan in an effort to Kill Bin Laden. Remember this? Via CNN
U.S. officials say the six sites attacked in Afghanistan were part of a network of terrorist compounds near the Pakistani border that housed supporters of Saudi millionaire Osama bin Laden.
American officials say they have convincing evidence that bin Laden, who has been given shelter by Afghanistans Islamic rulers, was involved in the bombings of the east African embassies.
..
The president said he ordered the strike against bin Laden and his compatriots because of compelling information they were planning additional terrorist attacks against our citizens and others with the inevitable collateral casualties and .. seeking to acquire chemical weapons and other dangerous weapons.
And what did some in Congress say?
Exceptions came in the forms of Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) -- who said "There's an obvious issue that will be raised internationally as to whether there is any diversionary motivation" -- Sen. John D. Ashcroft (R-MO) -- who said "there is a cloud over this presidency" -- and Sen. Dan Coats (R-IN) -- who said: "The president has been consumed with matters regarding his personal life. It raises questions about whether or not he had the time to devote to this issue, or give the kind of judgment that needed to be given to this issue to call for military action."
Yeah, right.
The fact is the Clinton had standing orders to have Bin Laden killed.
On the issue of the White House authorizing CIA to kill bin Laden, much has been written. Several reporters, including Barton Gellman in the Washington Post of December 19, 2001, have written that President Cliton approved multiple intelligence documents authorizing CIA to use lethal force against Osama bin Laden and his deputies. Sandy Berger elaborated before the Join House-Senate Inquiry Committee, saying. "We received rulings in the Department of Justice not to prohibit our efforts to try to kill bin Laden, because [the assasination ban] did not apply to situation in which you're acting in self-defense or you're acting against command-and-control targets"
Yet bin Laden was not killed. President Clinton as reported in USA Today [November 13.3001] reflected his frustration by noting "I tried to take bin Laden out... the last four years I was in office."
Firing Cruise Missiles from a distance isn't what Clinton wanted to do - but not having a partner in Pakistan a Special Forces attack using Helicopters was out of the question due to the land-locked nature of Afghanistan. A frustrated Clinton once told this to Gen. Hugh Shelton the head of his Joint Chiefs.
"Hugh, what i think would scare the shit out of these al Qaeda guys more than any cruise missile... would be the sight of U.S. commandos, Ninja guys in black suits, jumping out of helicopters into their camps, spraying machine guns. Even if we don't get the big guys, it will have a good effect." Shelton looked pained. He explained that the camps were a long way away from anywhere we could launch a helicopter raid. Nonetheless, America's top military oficer agreed to "look into it".
"Ninja guys in black suits, jumping out of helicopters..." Hmmm.
Here's what members of the State Dept said to then Terrorism Chief Richard Clarke in 1998 concerning the Pentagons resistance to "getting their hands dirty" going after Bin Laden.
"What's it gonna take, Dick?" Sheehan demanded, "Who the shit do they think attacked the Cole, fuckin' Martians? The Pentagon brass won't let Delta go get bin Laden. Hell, they won't even let the Air Force carpet bomb the place. Does al Qeada have to attack the Pentagon to get their attention?"
Yes, that's an exact quote from Clarke's Book "Against All Enemies".
When Clinton left Office Clarke documented this response by the incoming Bush Administration to their concerns about Bin Laden.
When Clinton left office many people, including the incoming Bush administration leadership, thought that he and his administration were overly obsessed with al Qaeda. After all, al Qaeda had killed only a few Americans, nothing like the hundreds of Marines who died at the hands of Beirut terrorists during the Reagan administration or the hundreds of Americans who were killed by Libya on Pan Am 103 during the first Bush's administration. Those two acts had not provoked U.S. military retaliation. Why was Clinton so worked up about al Qaeda and why did he talk to President-elect Bush about it and have Sandy Berger raise it with his successor as National Security Advisor Condi Rice?
Why? Better question, why did Bush and Co ignore them while having dozens of meetings about Iraq during 2001?
In early 2001 Clarke wrote an Urgent Memo about the need to address Al Qeada, but was ignored by Condi Rice. He even laid out a combined Military/Political Plan of Attack - which was also ignored for months. Right until just one week before 9/11 happened.
Rather than acknowledge that the Clinton Administration had made getting Bin Laden a top Priority... Clinton had to deal with Crap like this about the Cole from Fox News.
The perpetrator of the U.S.S. Cole bombing wasn't clear until after Clinton Left Office. The CIA and FBI had a disagreement, and going off half-cocked without proper facts could have been disastrous. (Y'know kinda like when both the State Dept. and Energy Dept. both said the CIA was wrong about the Yellowcake and Aluminum tubes in Iraq)
Bill Clinton missed Bill Laden in 1998. Bush missed him at Tora Bora in 2001. Obama finally got him in 2011.
Besides the fact the Bush was clearly Asleep at the Wheel before 9/11, then obsessed and distracted with Saddam Hussein afterward - it's was a fair and gracious thing for President Obama to invite him to today's gathering and services at Ground Zero because like Clinton at least he TRIED to get him.
“He doesn’t feel personally snubbed and appreciates the invitation, but Obama’s claiming all the credit and a lot of other people deserve some of it,” the source added.
“Obama gave no credit whatsoever to the intelligence infrastructure the Bush administration set up that is being hailed from the left and right as setting in motion the operation that got Bin Laden. It rubbed Bush the wrong way"
The fact that Bush turned down this invitation and this chance to talk directly with the first responders and families says volumes about him.
However NOONE should pretend that Bush deserved to be there more than Bill Clinton did - who also turned down an invite to today's even simply because Bush did.
Vyan