Well, it seems the 9-11 Commission is having to restate the history of events regarding the fact DoD intelligence, using an intelligence gathering methodology in a new way (on public records here in the US), identified two of the 9-11 ring leaders and pilots a full year before they helped kill 3000 Americans.

The Sept. 11 commission knew military intelligence officials had identified lead hijacker Mohamed Atta as a member of al-Qaida (website – news) who might be part of U.S.-based terror cell more than a year before the terror attacks but decided not to include that in its final report, a spokesman acknowledged Thursday. Al Felzenberg, who had been the commission’s spokesman, said Tuesday the panel was unaware of intelligence specifically naming Atta. But he said subsequent information provided Wednesday confirmed that the commission had been aware of the intelligence.

OK, let’s get beyond the lame CYA attempt by the commission staff. They blew it and now they look like idi0ts. This is were we need to focus

According to Weldon, a classified military intelligence unit called “Able Danger” identified Atta and three other hijackers in 1999 as potential members of a terrorist cell in Brooklyn, N.Y. Weldon said Pentagon lawyers rejected the unit’s recommendation that the information be turned over to the FBI in 2000.

According to Pentagon documents, the information was not shared because of concerns about pursuing information on “U.S. persons,” a legal term that includes U.S. citizens as well as foreigners legally admitted to the country.

They were not US citizens. They were not resident aliens. The ‘wall’ did not apply to them. They were tagged as AQ in-country at a time everyone in the Clinton administration claims they were on high alert looking for AQ cells. There is more to this than meets the eye. Information like this, at a time of hieghtened attention like this, leaks around procedural barriers.

To truly put a squash on the FBI learning of this threat is impossible in DC and the federal government. What I want to know was whether there were any directives to the FBI to cease any actions in addition to the directive to Able Danger to stop looking at people in the US and turn their attention outside. That would imply a full court press from high above.

And yes, my guess is the government did tell Able Danger to shift their sites (which is what happened, why we do not know). They were demonstrating data mining using US public information, found an AQ cell and were rebuffed. That is the simple answer. But it is not that simple in the government.

Staff members now are searching documents in the National Archives to look for notes from the meeting in Afghanistan and any other possible references to Atta and Able Danger, Felzenberg said.

Forget their files. Why isn’t the DoD and all NSC related organizations doing a search? The 9-11 Commission is out of business folks. Why are we still looking to them for answers we know they missed?

Hopefully more to come in a later post on the level of concern about AQ cells in the US at this critical time.

UPDATE:

Rick Moran at Right Wing Nut House is seeing the same thing I am. There is a lot more here than meets the eye. Rick has connected a lot more dots tying Berglar, er.. Berger’s actions to Able Danger’s report hitting the 9-11 commission. A must read.

END UPDATE: