The implication, just so we're clear, is that Al Qa'ida's ability to attack the United States is growing, not shrinking. Of particular concern to the Administration, naturally, is the implication that the strategy of fighting terrorism in Iraq--where the terrorists were actually hard to find--is less effective than fighting it in Afghanistan--where they weren't--perhaps because we're not really fighting it there any longer. Any suggestion that perhaps the U.S. should be focusing more on the presence of terrorism in Afghanistan rather than Iraq is bound to get the them nervous.
So, how does one spin that?
By arguing that the party responsible is, of course, not the Administration, but rather--well, let's just say--the Pakistani government. Why? Because it was their decision to stop battling separatist elements along the Afghani/Pakistani border that gave Al Qa'ida a chance to to find a place to call home. Here's National Intelligence Director Mike Mitchell on Meet the Press:
Now, what happened? What's different? What changed? In Pakistan, where they're enjoying a safe haven, the government of Pakistan chose to try a political solution. The political solution meant a peace treaty with a region that’s never been governed—not governed from the outside, not governed by Pakistan. The opposite occurred. Instead of pushing al-Qaeda out, the people who live in the—these federally- administered tribal areas, rather than pushing al-Qaeda out, they made a safe haven for training and recruiting. And so, in that period of time, al-Qaeda has been able to regain some of its momentum. The leadership’s intact, they have operational planners, and they have safe haven. The thing they’re missing are operatives inside the United States. So that's the difference between last year and this year, in, in our assessment.
In other words, if those guys--silly Pakistanis, hah! Trying to secure a political solution! Who would ever have thought of trying something like that, huh?--had just stuck with the military approach, we wouldn't be here.
Here's the problem: as Bill Scher wrote on Liberal Oasis back last September, the very same peace treaty that the Administration is now condeming was endorsed and indeed encouraged by the Administration. By the President himself, in fact. Let's quote from his press conference on September 22, 2006:
Q Thank you, sir. There's been a back-and-forth this week over whether the U.S. needs permission to strike inside Pakistan if Osama bin Laden is located. Could each of you give your position on that? And did you -- are you satisfied with his assurances on the tribal deal?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, I appreciate the briefing on the tribal deal. When the President looks me in the eye and says, the tribal deal is intended to reject the Talibanization of the people, and that there won't be a Taliban and won't be al Qaeda, I believe him, you know? This is a person with whom I've now had close working relationships for five-and-a-half years. And when he says, if we find -- when we find Osama bin Laden, he will be brought to justice, I believe him. And we'll let the tactics speak for themselves after it happens.
Well, I'm all for trying to un-Talibanize the region. But if we wanted to do that, perhaps shouldn't have removed our troops from Afghanistan and allowed a virtually unfettered playing field where former Talibani elements could effectively seize control over large swathes of the country. But that's what we did, and now the Administration is basically blaming Pakistan for following a policy that the Administration itself supported. Bill Scher is right on the money:
The Bush Administration did not prioritize going after the actual terrorist threat, instead choosing to pursue a permanent occupation of Iraq as a policy goal, whihc [sic] has created more terrorists.
While the Bush Administration is trying to use this safe haven to shift blame to Pakistan, the fact is the safe haven is the direct result of a policy that the Bush Administration is directly complict in crafting [emphasis in original]
It's a shame the Ministry of Truth didn't get that press conference transcript down the memory hole in time. Didn't we send Winston Smith to Guantanamo yet?
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