Incompetence, Thusly

I mentioned in an earlier post on the subject that intelligence and counterterrorism experts were surprised last week when Tom Ridge came out to rally America for our Two Minute Fear, and with unusual specificity to boot. One had gone so far as to call Ridge's actions "irresponsible." When it was revealed on Friday that in so doing, the Bush administration had blown the cover of a mole deep within al Qaeda, all for a chance at political gain, experts shifted from surprise to shock and anger at the blow this strikes the US in its fight against terrorist organizations.

Having access to someone as deep as Khan was in the organization, someone with knowledge of the encryption techniques al Qaeda uses to communicate, no less, was an incredible coup, and could have revealed a multitude of information about the enemy. Instead, his cover was blown to strike the terror pose that is George Bush's last refuge in the polls. In order to gain the shortest-term political advantage, to shift attention away from the success of the Democratic Party convention in Boston and America's growing comfort with a John Kerry presidency, the incompetents in the Bush administration have again sacrificed the safety of our nation in favor of their own greedy little aims.

Despicable. From Reuters:

Security experts contacted by Reuters said they were shocked by the revelations that the source whose information led to the alert was identified within days, and that U.S. officials had confirmed his name.

"The whole thing smacks of either incompetence or worse ," said Tim Ripley, a security expert who writes for Jane's Defense publications. "You have to ask: what are they doing compromising a deep mole within al Qaeda, when it's so difficult to get these guys in there in the first place?

"It goes against all the rules of counter-espionage, counter-terrorism, running agents and so forth. It's not exactly cloak and dagger undercover work if it's on the front pages every time there's a development, is it?"

A source such as Khan -- cooperating with the authorities while staying in active contact with trusting al Qaeda agents -- would be among the most prized assets imaginable, he said.

"Running agents within a terrorist organization is the Holy Grail of intelligence agencies. And to have it blown is a major setback which negates months and years of work, which may be difficult to recover."

No, not cloak and dagger at all. Not even, it seems, an honest attempt at effectiveness. What it is, if it's on the front pages every time there's a development, is a desperate grab at grandstanding, a desperate attempt to hold on to power through fear. These people must be brought out into the public eye for what they are: a sincere and growing danger to the safety of the American people, if not the entire world. A danger that is as deeply rooted in incompetence as it is in avarice and lust for power.