Former President Clinton Testifies

[Tigermike 3,717]

In case you missed it Slick Willie testified before the 9/11 commission behind closed doors today. They went crazy about Condi Rice testifying behind closed doors. Where is the brouhaha from the left and the democrats? Where is the brouhaha from the media? Nope there is no double standard is there?

Former President Clinton Testifies to 9/11 Panel

Thu Apr 8, 2004 08:02 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton testified behind closed doors to the national commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on Thursday, the panel said.

"The commission found the former president forthcoming and responsive to its questions. We appreciate the excellent cooperation he and his associates have given to us," the commission said in a brief statement.

Commission chairman Thomas Kean, a former Republican governor of New Jersey, and vice chairman Lee Hamilton, a former Democratic congressman from Indiana described Clinton's responses during a four-hour meeting as "frank" and "constructive."

In a joint appearance on the PBS program "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," Hamilton said Clinton made "a lot of very constructive suggestions to us as to how to put the report together and what kinds of recommendations to make."

But Kean said it was unlikely that what Clinton told them would be made public. "A lot of it is classified, and it was discussing classified materials. So we took very careful notes and they'll be used to inform the report, but there probably will not be a release of the material," he said.

Clinton appeared before the panel in closed session shortly after White House national security adviser Condoleezza Rice testified at an open hearing.

A spokesman for the former president said Clinton was pleased to have the opportunity to address the panel. "The president answered all their questions and believed it was a very constructive meeting," said Clinton spokesman Jim Kennedy.

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are also expected to testify together in a private meeting with the commission. The date of that session is not known.

REUTERS

[TexasTiger 14,289]

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are also expected to testify together in a private meeting with the commission.

Little Georgie can't face the panel without Uncle Dick holding his trembling little hand. Whatta man!

[BamaGrad03 0]

Its funny...all of this was worked up under Clinton's reign..the republicans were in power for 233 days and everyone is interrogating them like Al Queda SPRUNG up as soon as W was elected.

[Ranger12 53]

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are also expected to testify together in a private meeting with the commission.

Little Georgie can't face the panel without Uncle Dick holding his trembling little hand. Whatta man!

At the request of the panel! That has been a known fact for a couple of weeks now. Nice job trying to deflect.

It's funny how the liberal pukes are trying to make it almost look like Al-Qeada did not exist until Bush came into office. As Dr. Rice said, U.S. interests and personnel have been attacked before by Al-Qeada before 9/11, but nothing was done then. The same liberals that have did a 180 on Iraq and criticizing Bush right now would be the same ones opposing Bush if he would have ordered a pre-emptive strike against Al-Qeada. Their would have been an outcry for putting troops in harms way and the liberals would have tried to claim that Al-Qeada was not a threat to national security. They would have said the intelligence was bad, etc, etc, etc. It amazes me how many people are blind to this. These hearings are alot about the coming election. Why else would they feel the need to have all this know instead of a year ago? I don't remember the panel being acting like a bunch of jerks and interrupting Clark like they did Rice. Kennedy calling this Bush's Vietnam is an insult all the have served and currently served. Geez, that is what our troops really need to hear as far as moral goes! Freakin moron!

[TexasTiger 14,289]

(TexasTiger @ Apr 8 2004, 08:33 PM)

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are also expected to testify together in a private meeting with the commission.

Little Georgie can't face the panel without Uncle Dick holding his trembling little hand. Whatta man!

At the request of the panel! That has been a known fact for a couple of weeks now. Nice job trying to deflect.

Provide a link that Chairman Kean says this was the panel's preference. It was part of the bargain the WH get Rice to testify under oath in public.

Newsweek reports that a staffer from Kean’s commission faxed a photograph from November 1945 of presidential chief of staff Admiral William Leahy appearing before a special congressional panel investigating the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Accompanying the photo was a note saying the photo would be all over Washington in 24 hours if the White House didn't allow Rice to testify in public before the commission.

The White House denied that the photograph forced its hand.

Mr. Bush also agreed to testify, alongside Vice President Dick Cheney, but the session will be private, unsworn and unrecorded. The dual Bush-Cheney testimony, Kean said Sunday, was part of a deal with the White House.

"All things considered, maybe we would have rather to have them one at a time...

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/05/...ain610300.shtml

Nice attempt to deflect. Some of us actually follow the news, however, instead of waiting to see what Limbaugh, Hannity, Rupert Murdoch, Newsmax, and the Moonie owned Washingtion Times tells us to regurgitate.

Seems like Scott McClellan didn't get the same memo you got:

Bush, Cheney tag-team will limit divergent answers

By RON HUTCHENSON

Knight Ridder Newspapers

Unusual condition set by president for testimony before the 9-11 commission

WASHINGTON — President Bush's plan to appear before the Sept. 11 commission with Vice President Dick Cheney at his side violates a fundamental rule of investigations, but the panel accepted the unusual arrangement to get the president's cooperation.

As anyone who has ever watched a cop show knows, witnesses and suspects are best grilled alone to expose any inconsistencies in their stories.

"Get 'em alone, keep 'em alone, and don't even let them talk to each other immediately after, if you can help it," former New York police detective Robert Louden said Wednesday, recalling the tactics he used during his 21 years on the force. "In an ideal world, you want them separated."

But Louden, who now teaches at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, said normal rules don't necessarily apply to a case involving the president.

Bush insisted on the joint appearance in agreeing to take questions from all 10 members of the panel investigating the Sept. 11 attacks. He initially had offered to meet only with the commission's top two members, former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, the chairman; and former Rep. Lee Hamilton, the vice chairman.

No date has been set for the tag-team testimony. The arrangement virtually eliminates any possibility of divergent answers from Bush and Cheney, and lets Bush pass off any question he'd rather avoid and makes it impossible for the commission to ask either man any follow-up questions.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush proposed the joint session to streamline the question-and-answer process.

"This is a good way to help them get the information they need and do so in a timely manner," McClellan said. "They can talk to both of them and help better understand how to piece together all the information that they've already received."

Although the joint appearance has some advantages for Bush, it might also give new ammunition to critics who view Cheney as the real power in the White House and the driving force behind the decision to invade Iraq.

Commission members accepted the arrangement Tuesday to end drawn-out negotiations over terms of Bush's appearance. Bush also insisted that he and Cheney testify in private without being placed under oath.

Since the panel didn't prefer the joint performance, but had little choice, now why do you think George is afraid to go it alone?

[CarolinaTiger 0]

hey texastig...why are you so seemingly negative about the fact that bush & cheney are gonna appear together? why would it make a difference to you or anyone else at all? do you think bush and/or cheney are gonna just all of a sudden 'cave' and say, "oh my, we messed up...it's all our fault...we're complete failures"? what, exactly, would you hope to see? certainly you're not coming at this commission investigation from a partisan viewpoint, are you? hoping to gain political advantage by assigning blame to this administration?

the fact that they (& clinton) testify behind closed doors isn't a big deal. i fully accept the fact that there are some things better left unknown to the public. the commission is there...they'll hear the testimony, and then do their job...whatever that is.

[TexasTiger 14,289]

hey texastig...why are you so seemingly negative about the fact that bush & cheney are gonna appear together? why would it make a difference to you or anyone else at all? do you think bush and/or cheney are gonna just all of a sudden 'cave' and say, "oh my, we messed up...it's all our fault...we're complete failures"? what, exactly, would you hope to see? certainly you're not coming at this commission investigation from a partisan viewpoint, are you? hoping to gain political advantage by assigning blame to this administration?

the fact that they (& clinton) testify behind closed doors isn't a big deal. i fully accept the fact that there are some things better left unknown to the public. the commission is there...they'll hear the testimony, and then do their job...whatever that is.

I don't mind Bush and Cheney speaking behind closed doors. I think that will allow for a more open discussion. But as any investigator knows, if the goal is to uncover the truth you question people separately. From an investigation standpoint, there is no advantage to be gained from letting two key people testify together. And since the testimony is not public, I see no partisan advantage for either side in having them speak separately.

[Tigermike 3,717]

And this commission has not fallen victim to partisan politics?

What are they going to come up with that everyone did not already know?

1) There are Muslim extremists that want to kill everyone that does not agree with them and who also want to subjugate the entire world to their twisted doctrine.

2) The NSA, FBI, CIA, DOD & any other dept you wish to name did not work together well enough to do their jobs correctly! Their primary objective is to protect the United States and the citizens of the US! If they (govt depts.) are not communicating with and working with the rest other depts. then THEY NEED TO CHANGE!

3) Before 9/11 there was not enough being done to stop al Quada & other terrorists groups. Hopefully the NSA, FBI, CIA, DOD will be working much closer and better in the future. They need to stop working and living like bureaucrats and start working for the good of the people who pay their salaries.

Feel free to add to the list. But any further finger pointing by democrats, republicans or anyone writing a book is not productive worth a crap.

[Ranger12 53]

So you provided one source of some credibility, when I had heard different news on media outlets and they were not the ones that you assumed I got my news from. I heard it off of MSNBC, NBC, and other mainstream media outlets. Guess it depends on what one's interpretation of the news is. I think it is funny that you assume I only watch and listen to certain media outlets. What do assumptions make out of you? To fight the opposition effectivley you must know the opposition. Regardless of where I get my news, that is beside the point. Like the others said, why are you so hung up about them testifying together? You think that the would give a different testimony seperate? If Clinton and Gore tesitified together, I would care less. It is not like I would expect them to turn on each other. Again, the panel is biased and that is obvious. The Amercian people is seeing right through it. A new CNN/Gallup poll shows that more Amercians believe the Bush administration today, after Rice's testimony, then they did the day before. The Liberals just keep shooting themselves in the foot by thinking they are smarter then the Amercian people. A know alot of independents that think that the panels cocky and condescending attitude towards Dr. Rice yesterday was completely ridiculous. Laughing at the woman as she continued to talk just showed many Americans what a joke the panel is.

[CarolinaTiger 0]

why is your preposition that bush would tell anything other than the truth?

just because previous presidents have lied under oath is no reason to assume the current one will.

you still seem to be approaching this entire commission with a different goal.