NP: The Knack, Re-Zoom

Sullivan is pretty annoyed with this Victor David Hanson character, but I want to focus on the lead point, regarding this new CIA report:

This, it appears, is something that Hanson believes we should not have done. No scrutiny for an intelligence agency that failed to prevent the worst terror attack in American history? No accountability? Or such accountability should be kept under wraps? I'm baffled. Read the story this morning on the report. And remember: Hanson apparently wishes you didn't know any of this. Off-message, you see. Tenet, it appears, should be given a Medal of Freedom for failing on 9/11, and instituting torture. But internal criticism? Nah.

I'm not saying Tenet and the CIA don't deserve some investigation, criticism, blame and accountability, but what about the National Security Agency? After all, wasn't Richard Clarke allegedly sounding whatever warning bells he could find? Some of these would have been to the CIA, but wouldn't it be damning to find evidence of Clarke's successor in the same role ignoring him?

Plus, I don't think the NSA has the same aura of incompetence that the CIA does, which would make it harder for the right-wing water carriers to sweep it under the carpet by saying "well, duh, it's the CIA" with as much implied incredulity as they can muster.