Able Danger Update

It appears that the Senate is gearing up for hearings on Able Danger.

WASHINGTON -- Aides to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., are actively discussing scheduling a hearing on "Able Danger" and the larger issue of information-sharing between the Pentagon and the FBI, FOX News has confirmed.

...One of the central Able Danger claims — that military lawyers blocked the sharing of the Atta information from the FBI in the late summer and early fall of 2000 — will be a focus of the committee if a hearing takes place, FOX News has confirmed.

Though no date has been set for any hearings, Specter sent a letter to FBI Director Robert Mueller on Wednesday asking the agency to provide to the committee "all information and documents it has in connection with Able Danger, Lt. Colonel Anthony Shaffer, Captain Scott Philpott or any other persons having any connections with Project Able Danger, including, but not limited to, e-mail communication, notes, phone message slips, memos or any other supporting documentation."

Specter also asked Mueller to make available FBI agent Xanthig Mangum to meet with his staff. Mangum is reported to have corresponded in 2000 with Shaffer, who helped run Able Danger's mission and has offered to testify on its findings, about scheduling a meeting between Able Danger and FBI staffs. No meeting ever took place.

Shaffer, Philpott and another analyst involved with Able Danger have recently gone public with their findings, saying they were discouraged from looking further into Atta, and their attempts to share their information with the FBI were thwarted because Atta was a legal foreign visitor at the time.

...Congressman [Curt Weldon] said he spoke to [Pentagon spokesman Larry] DiRita on Wednesday and that "he was backpedaling left and right," claiming he was misquoted about the status of the search.

"There's something very sinister going on here that really troubles me," Weldon told FOX News on Thursday, blasting the Sept. 11 commission for not taking the claims more seriously. He said some panel members were trying to smear Shaffer and Able Danger.

"What's the Sept. 11 commission got to hide?" Weldon asked. "The commission is trying to spin this because they're embarrassed about what's coming out. In two weeks with two staffers, I've uncovered more in this regard than they did with 80 staffers and $15 million of taxpayer money."

Sept. 11 commission Chairman Thomas Kean recently told FOX News that the panel is waiting for a response from the Pentagon. Until then, the commission has stood by its work, maintaining that no documents they received from the military backed up the Atta claims.

Weldon added that at least five people on the federal payroll will testify under oath about the validity of the Able Danger intelligence.

...Weldon said not only was Specter planning hearings on Able Danger, but that he also spoke with House Speaker Dennis Hastert about focusing more attention on the matter.

"When this is over, the Sept. 11 commission is going to have egg all over their face," he said.

On Tuesday, Weldon issued the following statement regarding the Pentagon’s investigation into Able Danger:

“Three people associated with Able Danger have gone on the record to certify that it was a program tasked with mapping Al-Qaeda worldwide – its work included the linkages which identified Mohammad Atta. That finding should not be taken lightly, and neither should the credibility of the three people who have bravely gone on the record.

It is important that the American people get the full story of Able Danger. A search for the relevant data and products from this program needs to be conducted, and if nothing can be found, we need to find out what happened to this information.

The Pentagon should continue interviewing people with knowledge of the Able Danger program, and encourage those with information to come forward without fear of reprisal.

I strongly caution the Pentagon against issuing any further statements without a full accounting of the facts. Failure to do so would reflect poorly upon the investigation and might give the unfortunate impression that its results are predetermined.”

I think if the Senate can take up the matter of steroids in baseball and hold hearings, it should certainly address Able Danger.

Investigating Able Danger is about national security and preventing terrorist attacks and saving lives, not just whether or not a baseball player's name in a record book is legitimate.

Which is more important? Protecting the Homeland or preserving the integrity of baseball?

Able Danger deserves to be examined.

What occurred prior to 9/11 matters.

To dimiss Able Danger as water under the bridge is unacceptable if the country is serious about taking every possible measure to prevent another day like 9/11 from happening.