I am watching “Targeted,” a History Channel documentary on the rise of Bin Ladin. I was amazed by how it demonstrated over a course of decades how American security was sacrificed again and again by our politicians. The message is clear: faced with a growing terrorist menace, the U.S. (and especially the Clinton presidency) consistently sacrificed its security, appeased its enemies, and practiced a policy of pragmatism and pacifism. Numerous opportunities to kill Bin Ladin were forfeited to avoid offending an “allied” country, damaging a mosque, killing civilians, or even because a CIA lawyer objected to outright assassinations – apparently shortly prior to 9/11, the CIA was not permitted to assassinate Bin Ladin, only to capture him!
None of this is new to me of course, but it’s nevertheless amazing to see this dramatized in detail in mainstream media.