Americans Accept Clarke's Criticism of Bush

WASHINGTON - Most Americans accept Richard Clarke's key criticisms of President Bush's anti-terrorism record, but a majority also believe that politics influenced the timing of the attacks by the former White House aide, a Times poll has found.

Nearly three-fifths of those surveyed echoed the contention by Clarke that Bush placed a higher priority on invading Iraq than combating terrorism. And a smaller majority agreed with the charge by the onetime White House counterterrorism chief that Bush did not focus enough on the terrorist threat before the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

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In a potentially ominous sign for the White House, most independents agreed with Clarke on both questions. Over three-fifths of independents said Iraq has been a higher priority for Bush than fighting terrorism, while just under three-fifths said he did not pay enough attention at first to the terrorist threat.

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-poll1apr01,1,948618.story?c...