The National Security Advisor said two things in her public testimony that grabbed me.
First, that President Bush wanted a comprehensive plan to go after al Qaeda. No more "swatting flies." The swatting of flies represents, I think, not just a condemnation of the Clinton record on terrorism, but the arrogance of the Bush team. There's a hint of "what did they do?" and "we'll do it right."
Without defending the Clinton record on terrorism, it's fair to say that Bush's arrogant rejection of other Clinton policies has been deadly. I'm thinking of the decision to disengage from the effort to knock Israeli and Palestinian heads. Result: more bloodshed. And of the decision to attack Iraq, a rejection of Clinton and Daddy Bush. Result: well, you know.
Secondly, Rice said the Presidential Brief of August 6 was mostly "historic."
We shall see. Perhaps I should say, we may see. The White House has delayed declassifying the PDB. My guess is they are editing it carefully. To make it more..er... historic?
Anybody here old enough to remember when the Nixon crowd did their own version of the uncriminating tapes?