A quick recap of recent intelligence policy by the Bush Administration:
Like using a hacksaw to trim your fingernails, new CIA chief Porter Goss and his loyal henchman Pat Murray have forced out several top officials in the agency. Then Republicans in Congress and the White House approved the new intelligence overhaul -- wait, no they didn't -- oh, yes they have. Er, it's in limbo. Yesterday news leaked that the president asked for a review of the feasibility of one of the 9/11 Commission's recommendations, but as I discussed there is little indication that the administration actually wants to do anything. And let's not forget that the commission itself was a yes-we-want-it, no-we-don't tug of war from beginning to end.
Now we get the news, helpfully excerpted by Pudentilla, that the president wants to beef up the ranks of Secret Agent Men by many thousands. Except that the plan, which is already underway, comes with no funding or specific timetable.
If you're as confused as I am about what the administration's intentions are, despite the president's apparently clear pronouncements in favor of the commission's report during the campaign, one thing is clear: As an administrative matter, the real problems lie less with how intelligence is gathered and more with how it is used.
Exhibit 37 in a continuing series: Whether the White House was informed about an imminent coup attempt in Venezuela. Kevin Drum provides a helpful chronology:
April 6, 2002: A widely circulated CIA briefing paper about unrest in Venezuela states, "dissident military factions, including some disgruntled senior officers and a group of radical junior officers, are stepping up efforts to organize a coup against President Chavez, possibly as early as this month."
April 12-14, 2002: Dissident military factions in the Venezuelan army organize a coup against Chavez.
April 17, 2002: A senior administration official tells the press, "The United States did not know that there was going to be an attempt of this kind to overthrow — or to get Chavez out of power."
Sound familiar? Here's a hint: "Bin Laden determined to attack inside the U.S."
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