- Feb 6, 2003 - Powell pleads with the UN Security Council for a first strike against Iraq.
- Feb 9, 2003 - Citing credible threats that al Qaeda might be planning attacks on American targets, the U.S. government raised the national color-coded threat level Friday to orange, indicating a "high" risk of a terrorist attack. (This is when we were told to get that chemical warfare repelling duct tape. This was also a week before MAJOR anti-war demonstrations)
- May 12, 2003 - Jay Garner, the retired lieutenant general who was the top civil administrator in Iraq, left his post and other senior officials were also replaced. [For those who've read on the subject, you know Jay Garner was forced out for opposing Rumsfeld decisions (like disbanding the Iraqi army, among other) that would later prove devastating to the goal or rebuilding Iraq.]
- May 20, 2003 - The United States raises the nation's terror threat level Tuesday, saying the U.S. intelligence community believes al Qaeda has entered an "operational period worldwide" and might attack within the US.
- Jul 25, 2003 - After the Bush admin delayed its publication for months, Congress releases its 9/11 findings. The govt also deletes 28 pages of the report BELIEVED to detail Saudi funding of members of Al Qaeda in the Untied States prior to Sept. 11.
- Jul 28, 2003 - US troops charged with beating Iraqi POWs.
- Jul 29, 2003 - Department of Homeland Security issues a warning about the possibility of suicide attacks on airplanes.
- Sept 4, 2003 - The New York Times and Vanity Fair start investigating allegations that top White House officials personally approved the evacuation of dozens of influential Saudis, including relatives of Osama bin Laden, from the United States in the days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks when most flights were still grounded.
- Sept 5, 2003 - A Department of Homeland Security advisory warns that al Qaeda is working on plans to hijack airliners flying between international points that pass near or over the continental United States.
- Dec 18, 2003 - 9/11 Chair Thomas Kean says the attacks were preventable.
- Dec. 19, 2003 - A fed appeals court ruled the govt can not detain U.S. citizen Jose Padilla indefinitely without pressing charges against him or allowing him access to the courts.
- Dec. 19, 2003 - The Wall Street Journal reports that auditors at the Pentagon are accusing Halliburton of refusing to hand over internal documents related to allegations that the oil service company overcharged the U.S. government in Iraq. (David Kay quits in Iraq, having found no WMD)
- Dec. 21, 2003 - Ridge raises the terror threat level.
- Mar 15, 2004 - Military families organize together to oppose the war
- Mar 17, 2004 - Condoleeza opts out of 9/11 Commission hearings. She repeats her refusal several times during the week, and later on appears on "60 Minutes" to explain her position.
- Mar 18, 2004 - News report that a "high target" Al Qaeda leader has been "surrounded" in the border with Pakistan. CNN suggests it may be Bin Laden or al-Zawahri. After fighting stops, its revealed there were no "high value" targets.
- Mar 21, 2004 - The State Department issues a terror alert.
- Mar 21, 2004 - (Bush critic) Richard Clarke gives an exclusive to 60 Minutes about his book “Against All Enemies” just days before he is due to testify before the 9/11 Commission. In the show, he claims Bush immediately asked for a link to be found between Iraq and 9/11, even after being told there was none.
- March 30, 2004 - Rice continues to refuse to testify publicly in front of 9/11 Commission.
- Apr 1, 2004 - US contractors (mercenaries from Blackwater) killed and mutilated in Iraq. Same day that Richard Clarke is all over the news and the Pentagon issues a report that medical evacuations in Iraq hit 18,000.
- Apr 2, 2004 - A bulletin sent from the FBI & Homeland Security warn of terrorists that may try to bomb buses and rail lines in major U.S. cities this summer.
- May 10, 2004 - Bush approval rating hits lowest point (46%)
- May 18, 2004 - Colin Powell tells Meet the Press that he was deliberately mislead about WMD information. Powell's aide tries to cut him off mid-air. (Surprisingly, he wasn't apart of the 2nd Bush term!!!)
- May 18, 2004 – Former Abu Ghraib Intel Staffer Says Army Concealed Involvement in Abu Ghraib Abuse Scandal.
- May 19, 2004 - Newsweek reports that President Bush's top lawyer warned two years ago that Bush could be prosecuted for war crimes as a result of how his administration was fighting the war on terror.
- May 19, 2004 - Tom Ridge testifies before 9/11 Commission on this second day of hearings in NYC.
- May 19, 2004 - Nothing but bad news about prisoner abuse in Iraq, including breaking news that the Pentagon was told about the abuses back in November. Senate Armed Forces Committee holds hearings on Abu Ghraib abuses.
- May 25, 2004 - Homeland Security issues a terror alert: Major terror attack possible this summer.
- Jun 7, 2004 - The Wall Street Journal publishes exclusive report demonstrating that the Pentagon provided legal rationales and loopholes in 2003 to use torture and methods of near-torture, and how to avoid various international treaties and US laws.
- Jun 14, 2004 - VP Dick Cheney is caught lying about the alleged ties of Saddam Hussein to al Qaeda. Cheney is unable to provide any evidence to his assertions after journalists inquire. On June 15, Bush defends Cheney's unsourced assertions but does not provide any evidence either that there was a "link" between Iraq and al Qaeda or the 9/11 attacks.
- Jun 15, 2004 - The Justice Department announces to the press they have thwarted an imminent terror plot to bomb malls in Ohio. Somali immigrant arrested and charged on the case. [Its later revealed the man was arrested in Nov, 2003 in relation to a plot from March 2000. That doesn't sound imminent.]
- Jul 6, 2004 - Kerry names Edwards as his running mate.
- Jul 8, 2004 - Tom Ridge holds a press conference on terror alerts over the summer and during the conventions.
- Jul 11, 2004 - Senior White House officials discuss the possibility of delaying the elections in case of a terrorist attack.
- July 22, 2004 - The 9/11 Commission releases their findings.
- July 26-29 - Democratic Convention
- Aug 1, 2004 - White House Projects Highest Deficit Ever.
- Aug 2, 2004 - The Department of Homeland Security raises the terror alert at several large financial institutions in the New York City and Washington areas.
And the most important of all the Terror Alert charts... This is the one you'll NEVER get to see, they one they keep in some high level Republican campaign office...
"Yeah, um... the election is in a few days... lets go ahead and crank that thing all the way up to high. Yeah, just crank it up. Then, I'll go out there ask the American people... who do you trust to handle a crisis..."
McCain needs to plead with the Bush Administration... I'm sure they'll just go in the back room... where some dude is eating sandwiches and playing Playstation. Get a few towels... dust that sucker off... (remember, there have been almost no terror alerts in almost 4 years!!!) and get back to the basics.
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