A determination was made that the threat posed no danger to the President since he was at an off-site location, and protocols were in place to protect people in the area of the threat. Those protocols did not require any Presidential authority.Yeah; got it. In a crisis situation - plane threatens Capitol, White House, Mall, etc. - the apparatus of our Federal government worries not about whether Bush is in charge, but only about whether he is safe. In other words, he is more of a liability than an asset.
Just to drive the point home, let's note that Vice President Cheney was moved immediately to the underground White House situation room, and that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was informed of the incursion and - as the Pentagon spokeman put it - "was available to make any necessary decisions as the situation developed."
Reuters article
2 comments:
The protocols, Jon Stewart pointed out, included the "Run For Your Life in Terror" procedure.
I've read that there had been time to consider shooting the Cessna down. My question would be: How is it that the "protocol" involving killing civillians NOT a Presidential decision? Who makes this decision?
The Killing Civilians protocol is definitely Rumsfeld's. He was first-hand-up when Bush was handing out the Killing Civilians protocol at the first cabinet meeting.
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