From a reader who covers the White House: "So, I’m reading Powerline, as I do every day. And I’m skimming Hinderaker’s account of meeting with Frist … and suddenly I see it. 'He tells a chilling story of receiving a call from President Bush a week before the recent British airline bomb plot was disrupted. The message at that time, communicated to less than a handful of top federal officials, was that a terrorist plan was known to be in progress which could kill several thousand Americans, but there was no assurance that it could be stopped.' Um, beg pardon? Can this be true? Bush told Frist fully one week before the bust that there as some kind of plot that 'could kill several thousand Americans'? Why would Bush provide such useless, vague information with zero security value? Did Frist ask for any more information? Who else was told that 'there was no assurance that it could be stopped'? Any Congressional Democrats on that call list?" Update: On the other hand, if he knew of the threat in advance, but hadn't advised Congressional leaders, he would have gotten an earful about that.

Posted by Laura at August 31, 2006 12:13 AM