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American Morning
Attacks of September 11th Blamed in Part on Lack of Intelligence
Aired December 26, 2001 - 07:05 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.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The attacks of September 11th are blamed, at least in part, on a lack of intelligence, especially concerning al-Qaeda. The Central Intelligence Agency has moved quickly since then to try to fill the breach, with dramatic results. CNN National Security Correspondent David Ensor has that.
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DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The precision munitions of the air war have gotten much of the credit, but it may have been the war in the shadows that made the most difference in Afghanistan. The part of the war run from CIA headquarters, in Langley, Virginia.
FRANK ANDERSON, FORMER CIA OFFICER: This is, almost certainly, the most intelligence-intensive war that we've ever fought.
ENSOR: Though hundreds of CIA officers are in the field, only once have they shown up on the world's TV screens, during the questioning of American al-Qaeda fighter John Walker, by two CIA men, just prior to the killing of one of them. Within hours, during an uprising by Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners, CIA officer Mike Spann was killed.
ANDERSON: A tactical requirement in this war is to be a lot more careful about securing prisoners than we have in the -- than we've had to in the past.
ENSOR: The CIA had to bury one of its own, but only one, so far. And U.S. intelligence is winning plaudits for its work in Afghanistan.
SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D), CHAIRMAN, SELECT INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: Well, I think they?ve done an excellent job, and there are a couple of things they?ve done which I think are harbingers of what we'll be doing in the future. One, the use of the Predator.
ENSOR: CIA-owned Predator drones, equipped with precision guided missiles, have been like watchful eagles over the ground for up to 24 hours at a time. And have fired upon enemy convoys. And on the ground, CIA officers quickly built ties with anti-Taliban ground commanders, and with Pakistani, Russian, and other intelligence operatives. Ties that produced results. ANDERSON: Right on in that they obtained the information that they needed as a basis for operations, but also right on in that they've built the relationships upon which -- of -- we were able to build a war in which only four Americans, so far, have been combat deaths.
ENSOR: In the wake of the September 11th attacks, a worried Congress voted a big increase for the U.S. intelligence budget. Critics fear some of the money could end up wasted.
REUEL GERECHT, FORMER CIA OFFICER: You do not want to create hundreds of more positions back in Washington, D.C. You do not want to create hundreds of more positions -- official positions, where agency officers are fake diplomats living abroad. This is not the way to go.
ENSOR: But at the CIA, officials insist there are no plans to expand headquarters. Some of the new money will go, U.S. officials say, for equipment, training and incentives to get other nations to collect more intelligence against terrorists. To get them to help guard against another September 11th.
ANDERSON: The successes are always quiet, and the failures are spectacular. 9-11 -- obviously you can't call it anything other than a failure.
ENSOR (on-camera): The intelligence war against terrorism started well before September 11th. It will remain in high gear in dozens of countries long after the bombing stops in Afghanistan. David Ensor, CNN, Washington.
O'BRIEN: Still to come on our program, many happy returns as millions of Americans head out to the malls today to return gifts. You might actually find some of the best bargains of the season. We'll have a live report from the middle of it all, coming up.
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