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Mueller Testimony Expected Shortly Before 9/11 Commission
Aired April 14, 2004 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: In just minutes FBI Director Robert Mueller takes his turn in the hot seat. He's scheduled to testify before the 9/11 commission investigating September 11. CIA Director George Tenet went before the panel this morning.
President Bush has been meeting with the defense chiefs to discuss a buildup of forces in Iraq. Today he led a National Security Counsel meeting that included a video link with top U.S. military and civilian officials serving in Iraq. Sources say the Pentagon is ready to keep up to 20,000 troops an extra three months.
President Bush endorsing Israel's plan to withdraw from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. He made the announcement a short time ago during a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Palestinian negotiators are blasting the plan which includes Israel retaining six settlement areas in the West Bank.
A young woman in Wisconsin finds herself in a bit of legal trouble. Audrey Seiler was charged today with two misdemeanor counts of obstructing justice. She's accused of staging his disappearance last month touching off a massive manhunt.
As you know, this half hour, continuing live coverage of today's testimony before the 9/11 Commission. We're minutes away from scheduled testimony from FBI Director Robert Mueller. National correspondent Bob Franken monitoring everything. Let's talk about what we expect to hear from Mueller.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What we'll expect is really a supplement of what's going on in the room right now. If you look at the table, this is members of the 9/11 Commission staff, Christine Healy is at the moment reporting on the staff statement, number 12. These are statements that come out before the relevant witness appears. That witness, of course, is the FBI Director Robert Mueller.
And this, unlike so many of the other staff reports, is really quite complimentary. Quoting from it, says, "The FBI's leadership has set in motion," this is a quote, "an impressive number of potentially significant reforms."
However the report goes on to saying, "Most of the proposed reforms are a work in progress. And the work is needed," says this staff report, "in the matters of coordination. Coordination between the FBI field offices and headquarters, coordination between all facets of the FBI, coordination with other government agencies and in particular, coordination with the intelligence."
This is not new. But Robert Mueller can expect a fairly warm reception today. He is the man who has taken over and is the one who has been trying to put together an entirely different FBI, one that for instance, makes counterterrorism No. 1 priority. It is a term we're going to be hearing a lot today.
That, of course, a lot different from the way it was before September 11 when the No. 1 priority and the only priority was law enforcement. According to a staff report yesterday, counterterrorism was, quote, "a backwater." That has changed because, of course, after September 11, counterterrorism has probably become the No. 1 priority of government -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, definitely you say warm reception, but Mueller will face a number of tough questions, wouldn't you say?
FRANKEN: Well, he's going to face questions about what went wrong, questions about why they can't take care of certain things, questions really about this computer system of the FBI's which some have compared to an abacus -- or an adding machine in case you don't know what an abacus is.
But in any case, the FBI has a computer system that's described as 1980s technology, far outstripped on many occasions by the terrorists and their ability to use computer systems.
PHILLIPS: Bob, believe it or not, I have an abacus. Bob Franken, smart aleck. We'll check in back with you once Robert Mueller takes to the podium.
But right now we want to take you live to presidential hopeful John Kerry taking questions with reporters. Let's listen in.
(INTERRUPTED BY LIVE EVENT)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 14, 2004 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: In just minutes FBI Director Robert Mueller takes his turn in the hot seat. He's scheduled to testify before the 9/11 commission investigating September 11. CIA Director George Tenet went before the panel this morning.
President Bush has been meeting with the defense chiefs to discuss a buildup of forces in Iraq. Today he led a National Security Counsel meeting that included a video link with top U.S. military and civilian officials serving in Iraq. Sources say the Pentagon is ready to keep up to 20,000 troops an extra three months.
President Bush endorsing Israel's plan to withdraw from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. He made the announcement a short time ago during a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Palestinian negotiators are blasting the plan which includes Israel retaining six settlement areas in the West Bank.
A young woman in Wisconsin finds herself in a bit of legal trouble. Audrey Seiler was charged today with two misdemeanor counts of obstructing justice. She's accused of staging his disappearance last month touching off a massive manhunt.
As you know, this half hour, continuing live coverage of today's testimony before the 9/11 Commission. We're minutes away from scheduled testimony from FBI Director Robert Mueller. National correspondent Bob Franken monitoring everything. Let's talk about what we expect to hear from Mueller.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What we'll expect is really a supplement of what's going on in the room right now. If you look at the table, this is members of the 9/11 Commission staff, Christine Healy is at the moment reporting on the staff statement, number 12. These are statements that come out before the relevant witness appears. That witness, of course, is the FBI Director Robert Mueller.
And this, unlike so many of the other staff reports, is really quite complimentary. Quoting from it, says, "The FBI's leadership has set in motion," this is a quote, "an impressive number of potentially significant reforms."
However the report goes on to saying, "Most of the proposed reforms are a work in progress. And the work is needed," says this staff report, "in the matters of coordination. Coordination between the FBI field offices and headquarters, coordination between all facets of the FBI, coordination with other government agencies and in particular, coordination with the intelligence."
This is not new. But Robert Mueller can expect a fairly warm reception today. He is the man who has taken over and is the one who has been trying to put together an entirely different FBI, one that for instance, makes counterterrorism No. 1 priority. It is a term we're going to be hearing a lot today.
That, of course, a lot different from the way it was before September 11 when the No. 1 priority and the only priority was law enforcement. According to a staff report yesterday, counterterrorism was, quote, "a backwater." That has changed because, of course, after September 11, counterterrorism has probably become the No. 1 priority of government -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, definitely you say warm reception, but Mueller will face a number of tough questions, wouldn't you say?
FRANKEN: Well, he's going to face questions about what went wrong, questions about why they can't take care of certain things, questions really about this computer system of the FBI's which some have compared to an abacus -- or an adding machine in case you don't know what an abacus is.
But in any case, the FBI has a computer system that's described as 1980s technology, far outstripped on many occasions by the terrorists and their ability to use computer systems.
PHILLIPS: Bob, believe it or not, I have an abacus. Bob Franken, smart aleck. We'll check in back with you once Robert Mueller takes to the podium.
But right now we want to take you live to presidential hopeful John Kerry taking questions with reporters. Let's listen in.
(INTERRUPTED BY LIVE EVENT)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
