Organizing for America

President Bush Falsely Attacks Barack Obama After Failing To Kill Or Capture Osama Bin Laden For Over Seven Years

"I certainly don't know what he believes in. The only foreign policy thing I remember he said was he's going to attack Pakistan and embrace Ahmadinejad." -George W. Bush, February 10, 2008

"You want a fight, President Bush? Let's finish the fight with Bin Laden and Al Qaeda." -Barack Obama, October 2, 2002

The Bush-McCain decision to take our eye off of Afghanistan to launch a misguided war in Iraq diverted resources from the fight against terrorism, allowed Osama bin Laden to escape justice, and has enabled al Qaeda’s core leadership to reconstitute a sanctuary in northwest Pakistan. Now, President Bush is issuing false attacks on Barack Obama to try to distract the American people from his disastrous record and Obama's superior judgment on terrorism.,

FACT: Barack Obama has never said he would "attack Pakistan"--he has said that he would attack "high-level terrorist targets."

Obama's statement of policy--in his August 1 terrorism speech--dealt directly with high-level terrorist targets like Osama bin Ladin and Ayman al-Zawahiri, not the Pakistani government.

"There are terrorists holed up in those mountains who murdered 3,000 Americans. They are plotting to strike again. It was a terrible mistake to fail to act when we had a chance to take out an al Qaeda leadership meeting in 2005. If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won't act, we will."

Obama has voted for hundreds of millions of dollars to support the Pakistani government's efforts to root out al Qaeda, and would prefer that Pakistan take action. But he will not stand by if he has actionable intelligence about high-level terrorist targets in Pakistan's northwest tribal regions: "But relying on Pakistan while we fight the wrong war in Iraq has not worked. Because of that policy, bin Laden and members of his inner circle who bear direct responsibility for the murder of 3,000 Americans are plotting new attacks. If Pakistan cannot or will not take out these high-level terrorist targets and we have actionable intelligence about where they are, then I would take action to protect the American people. I firmly believe that if we know the whereabouts of bin Laden and his deputies and we have exhausted all other options, we must take them out."

The co-chairman of the 9/11 Commission--Tom Kean and Lee Hamilton--endorsed Obama's stance just over a month after his terrorism speech, writing in the Washington Post: "Pakistan should take the lead in closing Taliban camps and rooting out al-Qaeda. But the United States must act if Pakistan will not."

FACT: In the weeks following Obama's speech, President Bush echoed Obama's words

When asked at a new conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in August 2007 whether he would act on actionable intelligence about al Qaeda leaders within Pakistan, President Bush said, "I am confident that with actionable intelligence, we will be able to bring top al Qaeda to justice."

When asked about Pakistan at a separate news conference in August 2007, President Bush echoed Senator Obama’s words once against, saying: "I have indicated to him (Musharraf) that the American people would expect there to be swift action taken if there is actionable intelligence on high-value targets inside his country."

FACT: George Bush has failed to bring Osama bin Ladin, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and the core of al Qaeda's leadership to justice since 9/11.

Bush Failed to Strike Al Qaeda: President Bush has reportedly failed to act on intelligence reports that identified senior al Qaeda leadership targets within Pakistan--including bin Laden deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri. The New York Times wrote: "A secret military operation in early 2005 to capture senior members of Al Qaeda in Pakistan's tribal areas was aborted at the last minute after top Bush administration officials decided it was too risky and could jeopardize relations with Pakistan, according to intelligence and military officials. The target was a meeting of Qaeda leaders that intelligence officials thought included Ayman al-Zawahri, Osama bin Laden's top deputy and the man believed to run the terrorist group's operations". The decision to halt the planned "snatch and grab" operation frustrated some top intelligence officials and members of the military's secret Special Operations units, who say the United States missed a significant opportunity to try to capture senior members of Al Qaeda.

Bush Shortchanged the Fight Against Al Qaeda: Substantial military, intelligence, and diplomatic resources were shifted from Afghanistan and the hunt for bin Laden to the disastrous war in Iraq. These resources shortchanged our efforts to bring to justice the people responsible for 9/11, and have left the American people less safe. As the New York Times reported last summer: "Throughout late 2002 and early 2003, Mr. Grenier said in an interview, 'the best experienced, most qualified people who we had been using in Afghanistan shifted over to Iraq,' including the agency's most skilled counterterrorism specialists and Middle East and paramilitary operatives. If we were not in Iraq, we would have double or triple the number of Predators across Afghanistan, looking for Taliban and peering into the tribal areas. We'd have the 'black' Special Forces you most need to conduct precision operations. We'd have more C.I.A. We're simply in a world of limited resources, and those resources are in Iraq,' the former official added. 'Anyone who tells you differently is blowing smoke.'"

FACT: There is a high-level terrorist sanctuary in Pakistan that is serving as a training ground for al Qaeda, and President Bush's own senior military and intelligence community officials are contemplating action against al Qaeda.

George Bush Has Made Us Less Safe: The NIE in July 2007 warned of a reconstituted al-Qaeda leadership in Pakistan: "Al-Qa'ida is and will remain the most serious terrorist threat to the Homeland, as its central leadership continues to plan high-impact plots, while pushing others in extremist Sunni communities to mimic its efforts and to supplement its capabilities. We assess the group has protected or regenerated key elements of its Homeland attack capability, including: a safehaven in the Pakistan Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), operational lieutenants, and its top leadership. Although we have discovered only a handful of individuals in the United States with ties to al-Qa'ida senior leadership since 9/11, we judge that al-Qa'ida will intensify its efforts to put operatives here.

Al Qaeda is Resurgent in Pakistan's Tribal Areas: The New York Times reported today that a foiled plot in Spain may demonstrate a larger threat from Pakistan-trained terrorists: "The largely Pakistani cell formed quickly in Barcelona with support, and perhaps direction, from the tribal areas of Pakistan, the authorities said. According to the arrest warrant in the case, three suicide bombing suspects arrived in Spain within the last four months and the bomb making suspect had recently spent five months in Pakistan."

The Pentagon Favors the Obama Approach: The Pentagon is very concerned about the sanctuary. According to the New York Times, " the Pakistanis are still years away from fielding an effective counterinsurgency force. And some American officials, including Defense Secretary Gates, have said the United States may have to take direct action against militants in the tribal areas."