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FRIDAY, MAY 17, 2002

The White House on Thursday sought to dispel criticism that the Bush administration failed to act on warnings preceding September 11's terrorist attacks.

National security adviser Condoleezza Rice conducted a lengthy press briefing in which she released a detailed description of the information received prior to the attacks. Starting last summer, unspecified threats were gathered about numerous potential overseas targets, she said.

Then, a warning about hijacking by followers of terrorist Osama bin Laden was received but Rice said the administration didn't envision airplanes would be used as weapons. An FBI alert, however, warned that a detained suspect whom prosecutors say would have been the 20th suicide pilot might try to fly something into a building.

Democrat lawmakers reacted to the news with increased calls for an investigation into why the information wasn't shared or why the administration didn't put the clues together. At least one Republican, Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, criticized the FBI for failing to follow up on the airplane threat.

"The FBI didn't serve the country well," Shelby, the ranking member of the Senate intelligence committee, said in The Washington Post. "They were either asleep or inept."

Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said they would introduce legislation to create a 14-member commission to study the issue.

Get the Story:
Bush Aides Seek To Contain Furor (The Washington Post 5/17)
Before Sept. 11, Unshared Clues and Unshaped Policy (The Washington Post 5/17)
White House slams hijack 'politics' (The Washington Times 5/17)
Media Notes: As Reporters Seek Details, The Media Climate Shifts (The Washington Post 5/17)
No Hint of Sept. 11 in Report in August, White House Says (The New York Times 5/17)
Democrats End United Support of Bush on War (The New York Times 5/17)
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Related Multimedia:
Video: Rice Briefing | Text: Rice Briefing | Video: White House Briefing | Text: White House Briefing | Video: Sen. Tom Daschle | Text: Sen. Tom Daschle | Video: Rep. Dick Gephardt | Text: Rep. Dick Gephardt

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