Pubs probably won't release prewar intelligence report till after election

[dajoki]

WP
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/29/AR2006072900608.html?nav=rss_politics

Report on Prewar Intelligence Lagging
Information Democrats Want Most Might Not Come Out Until After Election

By Dafna Linzer
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, July 30, 2006; Page A07

When angry Democrats briefly shut down the Senate last year to protest the slow pace of a congressional investigation into prewar intelligence on Iraq, Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) claimed a rare victory.

Republicans called it a stunt but promised to quickly wrap up the inquiry. Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, which is overseeing the investigation, said his report was near completion and there was no need for the fuss.

That was nine months ago.

The Republican-led committee, which agreed in February 2004 to write the report, has yet to complete its work. Just two of five planned sections of the committee's findings are fully drafted and ready to be voted on by members, according to Democratic and Republican staffers. Committee sources involved with the report, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they are working hard to complete it. But disputing Roberts, they said they had started almost from scratch in November after Democrats staged their protest.

Roberts spokeswoman Sarah Ross Little said the slow pace is partially the result of Roberts's desire to give members a chance for input. She said Roberts will make public the two completed sections "when they are approved by the committee and have been declassified," rather than wait for the other three to be done, as well. If the sections are not approved by the committee next week, they will have to wait until members return from recess in September.

The section most Democrats have sought, however, is not yet in draft form and might not emerge until after the November election, staffers said. That section will examine the administration's deliberations over prewar intelligence and whether its public presentation of the threat reflected the evidence senior officials reviewed in private.

[joemurphy]

1. It's a sad thing that we're so impotent.

The Republicans literally control everything right now -- all branches of government. But their years in the darkness never taught them any lessons about how to rule. They only know how to be petty, partisan, and vindictive.
They have power now but they have no sense of the commonweal.

We all have to work very hard to get rid of these people.

[dajoki]

3. We absolutely must get rid of them n/t

[Olney Blue]

2. These criminals are masters at cover-ups- they did it for the 2004

election and they are doing it now for 2006.

[dajoki]

4. And will continue to do so...

untill the American people finally catch up with them and stop falling for all the BS.

[struggle4progress]

7. Bingo.

[gulfcoastliberal]

5. Hell, release it now. It'll be a whitewash a la the 9/11 farce.

The Dems will be too embarrassed by the fact they didn't bother to read the Iraq WMD NIE before voting for the war.

[joemurphy]

6. To be fair 22 Dems voted against the War.

We had too many that had Presidential aspirations, however, that voted in favor of it. Those votes have crippled us ever since. I really believe that because of those votes, Democrats have never been able to mount any kind of coherent message about Iraq.

Bush cynically timed his war with the mid-term elections. Democrats lacked the courage to oppose him. It's hard to respect leaders that lack the courage of their convictions.

[Bjorn Against]

8. Isn't that what they said before the last election?

Just wait once this election is over they will say they can not release it until after the 2008 elections.

[InaneAnanity]

10. Maybe

When they eventually do release it, even with all the whitewashing, anybody who asks for further inquiry will be greeted with "But that took place so long ago!!"

[struggle4progress]

9. K-n-R