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Vice-President Dick Cheney says another al-Qaida terrorist attack on
the United States is a near certainty. Mr. Cheney says Americans must stay
vigilant.
The vice-president says the possibility of another terrorist
attack is very real. "In my opinion the prospects of a future attack on the
United States are almost certain. I would like to be able to say it is never
going to happen again. But I don't think anybody who has really looked at it
can say that," he said.
Mr. Cheney told NBC television's Meet the Press program
that information is coming in about terrorist activities, but it is not
specific and does not point to a certain time or place. "We don't know if it is
going to be tomorrow or next week or next year," he said.
He made the remarks on a morning when there was word the
terrorist threat could be on the rise.
Reports in The New York Times and major broadcast networks
quoted U.S. officials as saying they were getting new messages hinting that
al-Qaida is planning another major attack.
White House National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice was asked
about the reports during an appearance on ABC's This Week. She said more
information is coming in. But she said part of the reason may be enhanced U.S.
intelligence efforts since the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
and the Pentagon.
She said the United States is also obviously on a higher state of
alert today than it was when the terrorists first struck. "We are constantly
looking at a flood of information. We have to note that we have many more
sources of information now than we had prior to 9-11. There is a kind of
mobilization of the world wide intelligence network and we are getting
information from multiple services and so just the sheer volume of information
is greater" she said.
Vice-President Cheney and Ms. Rice went on national television,
in large part, to counter new criticism of the administration's handling of
information received prior to the September 11th attacks.
A few days ago, the White House acknowledged that President
Bush was told last August that al-Qaida might be planning a hijacking, but
never knew they might use planes as missiles. Congressional Democrats said the
administration may have missed a warning, and suggested there should be an
inquiry that goes beyond the current investigation of the House and Senate
Intelligence Committees.
Vice-President Cheney's initial response was to warn the
Democrats against playing politics. But his attitude during his Sunday
television appearances was more restrained. He told Meet the Press that
he felt, "a deep sense of anger." But now, he said, everyone should just calm
down.
"There is a right way and a wrong way for us to conduct
ourselves during this period of time, both in the executive and legislative
branches. And we all need to adhere, I think, to a very high standard," he
said.
Calmer tones were also heard on Sunday from the top Democrat in the
House of Representatives. Richard Gephardt told the Fox News Sunday
program that he wants an inquiry free of political rhetoric that can work in
secret, if necessary, to assess the mistakes made prior to September 11th and
suggest improvements.
"I never ever, ever thought anybody, including the president
did anything up to September 11 other than their best," he said. "The question
is, how do we do better?"
Mr. Gephardt is suggesting a panel be established just to
handle this investigation made up of lawmakers, administration officials, and
outside experts. But the White House is insisting that any inquiry should be
conducted within the strict security procedures that govern the work of the
congressional intelligence committees.
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