Now is your chance libs - We know what Bush did after 9/11,?

Question

What would you have done ? Please remember - The Mid East has been embroiled in war almost constantly since 2550 BC so a rational and logical appeal for peace was more than likely not an option. Of course if you think you're smarter than the 1000's who have tried that approach, knock your self out.

Answer 1

#1 Closed borders
#2 Killed Osama and mounted his head on my wall
#3 bagged Al Sadre, and distributed a Porn video starrring him called..."On the Farm With 74 Virgin Piggies".
#4 boosted funds to covert anti-terror agencies

But before 9/11 , I would have actually considered Clinton's warning about terrorist being our biggest threat, and put marshals on planes beforehand. all other countries where getting ready for plane hijackings, except us.

Answer 2

Well, my (lib) views are probably too simple and idealistic, but here's what I would have done:
-- chosen a staff of very smart people, not only people who just agreed with me. I would have insisted that their allegience is to the Constitution first. Therefore, it was their duty to tell me when I was out "in the tall grass".
-- assess the intell already available (it was there) and not just pick out the parts I liked or agreed with
-- advise all agencies (CIA, NSA, FBI) to cooperate with one another. Direct them all to report on most likely threat scenarios, our weaknesses and how to fix the problems.
-- as part of the assessments, I'd want to know the sources (opression, poverty, local factions, politics, etc.) to understand the basis of the threats and address those problems once the current terrorists were dealt with. Basically, know what we're getting into before we're in it.
-- I would have gone to the UN and given them a choice, ultimatum really. They either take action or we will. If the UN agreed, then I would have supported them with intell, special forces, whatever was needed. If a country is part of the UN and harbors terrorists, they don't get to gripe if we go in the dark of night and capture.
-- I would have gone to the World Court and given them the same deal. If they agreed, they would oversee the prisons, interrogation and trials. If not, then we'd do it.
-- once terrorist cells were identified, and infiltrated if possible, I would have ordered attacks or insisted the UN do so.
-- I would not fight terrorism with conventional warfare, it doesn't work. Only creates more civilian casualities and resentment as breeding ground for more terrorists. Strike fast, get out, onto the next cell
-- I wouldn't worry about creating individual martyrs, that was their choice to begin with anyway.

Answer 3

Attacking Iraq really wasn't ideal because it had nothing to do with 9/11. Bin Laden was in Afghanistan, I don't think I would have declared war. I think I would have sent people to look for him, but starting a war in a different country wasn't that resonable. I'm not saying that Saddam was a good man, but there are a lot of evil people out there that need to be stopped. You are right the Middle East has been in war for a long time, so why is war the answer? Fighting war with war is like fighting fire with fire, it doesn't make it end.

Answer 4

Bush knew that 9-11 was going to happen, We have proof that an aid at the pentagon asked Cheney if the order to not shoot down the planes still stood over three different times before the attack...Cheney said and I quote---"YES! Have you heard anything to the contrary?" So if I was Bush....I would have committed suicide because I felt like a betrayer and a murderer! That's what I would have done if I was Bush after 9/11 Further more wasn't he on an unusually long vacation at his ranch before the attacks on our country...How can the conservatives even think of blaming anyone but him and his cronies for it? If nothing else their incompetence caused it!!!!

Answer 5

First of all, i'm not a liberal. But this is what I would have done before and after 9/11:

-I would have held many meetings discussing the threat from al-Qaeda. The CIA had repeatedly warned the Bush Administration about the threat from Osama bin Laden. Yet Bush held no meetings on bin Laden and instead he held many meetings on Saddam Hussein.

-After 9/11, I would not have kept repeatedly asking George Tenet and Richard Clarke to find some sort of link with Saddam Hussein even though there was no link found. Instead I would have focused on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

-I would not have contracted with the Northern Alliance of Afghanistan to go in first in Operation Anaconda to capture bin Laden. Instead I would have sent much better trained and armed U.S. soldiers in first to take out bin Laden.

-I would have gone into the area of Northwestern Pakistan that is controlled by radical Islamists and harbors both Afghan Taliban and al-Qaeda members.

-I would not put so much trust into Pervez Musharaff. Pakistan does not have a democratically elected government. Musharaff overthrew the Pakistani government some years ago and now it is a military government.

-Lastly, I would never have gone into Iraq. Saddam Hussein hated Osama bin Laden and vice versa. Saddam hated any terrorist in his country. He wanted 100% of the power in Iraq. If Osama bin Laden had entered Iraq while Saddam ruled it, he would have been killed instantly by Saddam's administration. In contrast, now if Osama entered Iraq, he would be surrounded with supporters who would be willing to harbor him. Terrorists from Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia are all going to Iraq for a safe haven, this would NOT have occured while Saddam Hussein ruled.

*In case anyone didn't know, Osama bin Laden offered al-Qaeda fighters to the Saudi government to fight AGAINST Iraq in the first Persian Gulf War.

Answer 6

In the first day after 9/11 Bush, Cheney and Rumsfield acted like they hit the lottery because this was going to provide them with an excuse to do what they had wanted to do for years; attack Iraq.

Never mind that Iraq had NOTHING to do with 9/11. Never mind that Iraq WAS a secular nation but is now a theocracy, with women having even less freedom than they did under Hussein. Nevermind that the right to due process for all citizens is less likely now than it was then. Never mind that the region is in bigger turmoil now than it was under Hussein. Never mind that thousands of Americans are killend and mamed for nothing.

If you're such a great supporter of the war in Iraq...why don't YOU go instead of pushing the responsiblity on Liberals.
Or are you just another chickenhawk?

Answer 7

Uh, no one else would have attacked a country that had nothing to do with it.

We should have stopped supporting terrorist governments decades ago; if we stopped (and stopped torturing and murdering people) that would help.

If we hadn't supported Israel, and prevented the world from sactioning it for its crimes against humanity, they'd have been forced to clean up their abysmal human rights record.

Of course, if we hadn't put the Shah of Iran in power, and kept him in power, the Iranians wouldn't hate us, either.

Or armed and supported nearly every oppressive government we could find.

Or bullied the world.

Etc., etc., etc.

If we hadn't alienated everyone, we probably would have been able to find Bin Laden, and made him stand trial.

Answer 8

He had my support 100% for Afghanistan and the hunt for OBL. Iraq was a huge blunder. And no matter how you cut it, Iraq is going to be a thorn in the side of the country for years, slowing killing our troops, dividing our country and squandering our resources.

Answer 9

Send everybody and their mom to Afghanistan, get Bin Laden alive. Put him on TV all over the world.. Bring everyone back and use our intelligence to bust his cells..

Game over!!

Answer 10

Yes, they have been fighting colonial and imperial forces forever!

I would have not even bothered with Bin Laden and attacked Iran, Iraq, China, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, India and Russia at the same time with hydrogen bombs bringing about the Rapture!