...Two Statements of Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney On The Need For A 911 Investigation
Statement of Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney on Terrorist Warnings
May 16, 2002
Several weeks ago, I called for a congressional investigation into what warnings the Bush Administration received before
the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. I was derided by the White House, right wing talk radio, and spokespersons
for the military-industrial complex as a conspiracy theorist. Even my patriotism was questioned because I dared to
suggest that Congress should conduct a full and complete investigation into the most disastrous intelligence failure in
American history. Georgia Senator Zell Miller even went so far as to characterize my call for hearings as "dangerous,
loony and irresponsible."
Today's revelations that the administration, and President Bush, were given months of notice that a terrorist attack was
a distinct possibility points out the critical need for a full and complete congressional investigation.
It now becomes clear why the Bush Administration has been vigorously opposing congressional hearings. The Bush
Administration has been engaged in a conspiracy of silence. If committed and patriotic people had not been pushing for
disclosure today's revelations would have been hidden by the White House.
Because I love my country, because I am a patriot, and because the American people deserve the truth, I believe it would
be dangerous, loony and irresponsible not to hold full congressional hearings on any warnings the Bush Administration
had before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Ever since I came to Congress in 1992, there are those who have been trying to silence my voice. I've been told to "sit
down and shut up" over and over again. Well, I won't sit down and I won't shut up until the full and unvarnished truth
is placed before the American people.
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Statement of Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
April 12, 2002
The need for an investigation of the events surrounding September 11 is as obvious as is the need for an investigation
of the Enron debacle. Certainly, if the American people deserve answers about what went wrong with Enron and why (and we
do), then we deserve to know what went wrong on September 11 and why.
Are we squandering our goodwill around the world with what many believe to be incoherent, warmongering policies that
alienate our friends and antagonize our allies? How much of a role does our reliance on imported oil play in the
military policies being put forward by the Bush Administration? And what role does the close relationship between the
Bush Administration and the oil and defense industries play, if any, in the policies that are currently being pursued by
this Administration?
We deserve to know what went wrong on September 11 and why. After all, we hold thorough public inquiries into rail
disasters, plane crashes, and even natural disasters in order to understand what happened and to prevent them from
happening again or minimizing the tragic effects when they do. Why then does the Administration remain steadfast in its
opposition to an investigation into the biggest terrorism attack upon our nation?
News reports from Der Spiegel to the London Observer, from the Los Angeles Times to MSNBC to CNN, indicate that many
different warnings were received by the Administration. In addition, it has even been reported that the United States
government broke bin Laden's secure communications before September 11. Sadly, the United States government is being
sued today by survivors of the Embassy bombings because, from court reports, it appears clear that the US had received
prior warnings, but did little to secure and protect the staff at our embassies.
Did the same thing happen to us again?
I am not aware of any evidence showing that President Bush or members of his administration have personally profited
from the attacks of 9-11. A complete investigation might reveal that to be the case. For example, it is known that
President Bush's father, through the Carlyle Group had - at the time of the attacks - joint business interests with the
bin Laden construction company and many defense industry holdings, the stocks of which, have soared since September 11.
On the other hand, what is undeniable is that corporations close to the Administration, have directly benefited from the
increased defense spending arising from the aftermath of September 11. The Carlyle Group, DynCorp, and Halliburton
certainly stand out as companies close to this Administration. Secretary Rumsfeld maintained in a hearing before
Congress that we can afford the new spending, even though the request for more defense spending is the highest increase
in twenty years and the Pentagon has lost $2.3 trillion.
All the American people are being asked to make sacrifices. Our young men and women in the military are being asked to
risk their lives in our War Against Terrorism while our President's first act was to sign an executive order denying
them high deployment overtime pay. The American people are being asked to make sacrifices by bearing massive budget cuts
in the social welfare of our country, in the areas of health care, social security, and civil liberties for our enhanced
military and security needs arising from the events of September 11; it is imperative that they know fully why we make
the sacrifices. If the Secretary of Defense tells us that his new military objectives must be to occupy foreign capital
cities and overthrow regimes, then the American people must know why. It should be easy for this Administration to
explain fully to the American people in a thorough and methodical way why we are being asked to make these sacrifices
and if, indeed, these sacrifices will make us more secure. If the Administration cannot articulate these answers to the
American people, then the Congress must.
This is not a time for closed-door meetings and this is not a time for se crecy. America's credibility, both with the
world and with her own people, rests upon securing credible answers to these questions. The world is teetering on the
brink of conflicts while the Administration's policies are vague, wavering and unclear. Major financial conflicts of
interest involving the President, the Attorney General, the Vice President and others in the Administration have been
and continue to be exposed.
This is a time for leadership and judgment that is not compromised in any fashion. This is a time for transparency and a
thorough investigation.
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