George,

I am struck by Bush's words that there was no "actionable" intelligence in the August 6,2001 Presidential Briefing memo.

Apparently, he expected the terrorists to provide targets and dates. Unless I am incorrect, the CIA and FBI are both part of the executive branch, and if they were remiss in seeing that all the information the agents and counter terror individuals had gleaned failed to reach the point of being "actionable", the commander-in-chief should carry the ultimate responsibility for any failure.

The captain of an aircraft carrier would be responsible for the failure of any division under his command. The buck should stop at the commander's desk. It appears that Bush's motto should be "the buck passes here".

Sadly, the invented "actionable" intelligence on Iraq was acted upon post haste, and we are witnessing the carnage and tragedy of that folly. When is the "critical mass" of this incompetent administration reached where the overwhelming number of American citizens say,"THROW THE BUMS OUT!!"

Harry Tenney (electronic mail, April 12, 2004)