It's beyond comprehension how George Tenet can stand before the American public in a profit-making scheme to blame others for his lack of backbone and repeated mistakes while CIA director.
This week, he has bounced from network to network to promote his book, "At the Center of the Storm," which criticizes the Bush administration for taking the United States to war in Iraq. Tenet's arguments might actually have some credence if they weren't so flawed by his own tragic errors -- which have cost thousands of American lives.
On "60 Minutes," for example, his credibility immediately collapsed under tough questioning by reporter Scott Pelley. Tenet quickly ran amok in explaining the CIA's failure to prevent the 9/11 attack. Having solid evidence that "multiple, spectacular attacks" were imminent, Tenet confessed he didn't share the information with President George Bush, with whom he met every morning. Instead, he asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to authorize an attack against al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
"The president is not the action officer. You bring the action to the national security advisor and people who set the table for the president to decide on policies they're gonna implement," Tenet said. Seems an insufficient response if multiple, spectacular attacks were imminent.
Later, he calls the war in Iraq "a national tragedy" for the United States, adding that Saddam Hussein played no role in the 9/11 attack. But he can't explain how CIA intelligence concluded Iraq had between 100 and 500 tons of chemical weapons -- misinformation that helped lead the U.S. into war.
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"...my business is not always about the truth. It's about people's best judgments about what the truth may be. We believed it," Tenet said on "60 Minutes."
He further allowed President Bush to recite similar rubbish during his 2003 State of the Nation address. Tenet confessed he was given a copy of the president's speech but didn't have time to review it. Tenet gave the duty to an underling, who didn't catch the false claim that Iraq was purchasing uranium for nuclear bombs.
He concluded by complaining his "slam dunk" remark regarding Iraq was leaked to the press by top administrators, saying "Men of honor don't do this. You don't throw people overboard."
Apparently being a "man of honor" within CIA is more important than being a man who gathers accurate intelligence and has the backbone to ensure it's used wisely. Between his errors on 9/11 and in Iraq, Tenet has the blood of 6,000 Americans on his hands. He not only deserved to be thrown overboard, he deserved to be keel hauled.
