American Morning
Frances Townsend: Tom Ridge has it wrong
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/08/21/townsend.ridge.art.jpg caption="Frances Townsend, CNN contributor and former homeland security adviser, disputes the allegation politics were involved in the terror alert level."]
During the 2004 presidential race, many on the left accused the Bush White House of trying to use the politics of fear to get re-elected. That same claim is now coming from a former Bush insider.
America's first secretary of homeland security, former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, says in his new book that he was pressured to raise the nation’s terror alert level ahead of the election.
Frances Townsend, former homeland security adviser for the Bush administration, says that's not what happened. Townsend is now a CNN national security contributor and she spoke with Kiran Chetry and John Roberts on CNN’s “American Morning” Friday.
Kiran Chetry: In his book Ridge says, “Ashcroft strongly urged an increase in the threat level, and was supported by Rumsfeld. There was absolutely no support for that position within our department. None. I wondered, ‘Is this about security or politics?’” Fran, you were in the meetings. What is your recollection of how that whole conversation went down?
Frances Townsend: Kiran, I actually chaired the meeting and called it. Tom Ridge knew very well that I agreed with him that I didn't believe there was a basis to raise the threat level, but I knew there were others in the Homeland Security Council that did believe that and we agreed we'd have the conversation. By the way, what Tom Ridge's book doesn't say is the most eloquent case for not raising the threat level was not made by Tom in fact, it was made by Secretary of State at the time, Colin Powell. And Bob Mueller, at great personal risk – remember his boss John Ashcroft was advocating to raise it – based on the facts of the intelligence, Bob Mueller himself made an eloquent case not to raise it.
Avlon: Hyper-partisan blast from the past
Editor’s note: John P. Avlon is the author of Independent Nation: How Centrists Can Change American Politics and writes a weekly column for The Daily Beast. Previously, he served as Chief Speechwriter for New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and was a columnist and associate editor for The New York Sun.
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/08/21/wingnuts.shaheen.delay.art.gi.jpg caption="Cindy Sheehan (L) and Tom DeLay (R)."]
The health care debate continued to heat up with week. There was an eruption of wingnuttery on the left, as liberals went into reflexive protest mode against the Obama administration’s indication that they might support a bipartisan bill with a non-profit co-op instead of a public option.
On the right, rock-ribbed partisans are devoted to doing whatever they can to derail Obama’s health care reform in any form. They share a my-way-or-the-highway approach to politics that condemns compromise and denies the concept of common ground.
This week’s Wingnuts are two hyper-partisan blasts from the past who’ve emerged from semi-retirement in an unwelcome attempt to reinsert themselves into the national debate – Cindy Sheehan and Tom DeLay.
On the left, Cindy Sheehan has announced her intention to protest President Obama on his summer vacation in Martha’s Vineyard, according to the Washington Examiner. Sheehan was a far-left fixture a few years ago, protesting then-President George W. Bush outside his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Now she’s back because the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan haven’t stopped per her instructions. Here’s a partial list of her demands:
What’s on Tap – Friday August 21, 2009
Here are the big stories on the agenda today:
- Did the Bush White House use the politics of fear during the 2004 election? There are explosive new allegations that there was political pressure to raise the country's terror threat level, before the 2004 election. And they come from the man hired after 9/11 to stop another 9/11: the first Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. We’re live from Washington. We’re also talking to CNN Contributor Fran Townsend, who was a Bush homeland security insider during that time.
- Hurricane Bill is now a powerful category three storm and it could again become a category four. It’s expected to bring extremely dangerous rip tides as it heads up the Atlantic – in line with our East Coast. Rob Marciano's tracking the extreme weather for us this morning.
- And from town halls to talk radio, President Obama keeps pushing his make or break plan for health care reform. He says there's still way too much misinformation going around. Plus, see why the president thinks, quote – "everyone in Washington gets all wee-wee'd up."
- This weekend only! Across the country, car lots are bracing for a busy, busy weekend. After a month and nearly three billion bucks, the amazingly popular "cash for clunkers" program expires on Monday. So just how successful has the rebate program been? Will some dealers ever see a dime? What will its end mean for Detroit?
- The tractor pull isn’t in town, so we’re going to them. Rob’s Road Show is live in “Pull Town” today, for the National Tractor Pull Championships, at the Wood County Fairgrounds in Bowling Green, Ohio.
We Listen – Your comments 8/20/2009
Editor's Note: American Morning’s Thursday audience continued to express their opinions towards the Obama administration’s health care reform proposals. Viewers were split on whether a public option should be made available and viewers questioned how President Obama intends on paying for the reforms.
- Carol: I wish that you would stop saying that we can keep our own insurance if a public plan is passed. Many clips of the president have been shown in which he says that eventually everyone will be on the public plan–either by choice or being forced on it. Businesses won't be able to afford the high taxes put upon them by the gov, so people who work for small businesses will be forced on the public plan. Also, what is going to happen when private insurance companies downsize or go out of business???–millions of middle class Americans who work for insurance companies will start to get laid off and they'll be without jobs. This will definitely put this country into a depression.
- Larry: Why is it, if this health care bill is so good (per the US Congress) why did they exempt themselves from it? If it is good enough for us, shouldn't it be good enough for them?
- Bernard: Good morning. I am surprise about the negative the Canadian health care that your country suppose to know about. The republican and some other organizations know what about our system. John Robert should know better as a Canadian. He should take a week to do interview and explain what our system is all about. It is not bad at all. Is it perfect? No, but it is working.
- William: I just viewed your piece on how Obama's healthcare plan is similar to the universal healthcare plan in Massachusetts. Your piece seemed to reflect how successful this plan has been. Unfortunately, this is not the case. I was surprised that there was no interviewing done with doctors in some of the major hospitals in Boston. I know I have read articles in a health newsletter put out by Public Citizen that were written by these doctors and pointed out the several problems this program has produced.
- Noah: not being discuss as an option for the shortage in Primary care providers, these provider have been practicing for decades
What do you think? Continue the conversation below:
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