Rice: Nation Not on 'War Footing' on 9/11

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Rice: Nation Not on 'War Footing' on 9/11
Apr 8, 9:21 AM (ET)

By HOPE YEN





WASHINGTON (AP) - National security adviser Condoleezza Rice testified Thursday "there was no silver bullet that could have prevented" the worst terror strike in the nation's history, adding that the United States "simply was not on a war footing" at the time of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.



"For more than 20 years, the terrorist threat gathered, and America's response across several administrations of both parties was insufficient," Rice told the commission delving into the attacks that killed more than 3,000, destroyed the twin World Trade Center towers in New York and blasted a hole in the Pentagon.



In widely anticipated testimony, Rice offered no apology for the failure to prevent the attacks - as did former anti-terrorism adviser Richard Clarke two weeks ago. Instead, she said, "as an officer of government on duty that day, I will never forget the sorrow and the anger I felt."

Rice's testimony, under oath and on live national television, came after weeks of White House resistance. President Bush yielded in response to repeated public requests from members of the commission - as well as quiet proddings of Republicans in Congress - that an on-the-record rebuttal was needed in response to Clarke's explosive charges.

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Bush, she said, "understood the threat, and he understood its importance," she said.

"He made clear to me that he did not want to respond to al-Qaida one attack at a time. He told me he was 'tired of swatting flies'," Rice told the commission

Full Story: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040408/D81QL3Q00.html