Latest on the Terror Arrests

The WaPo has a good piece on the events that led up to the arrests of those plotting to blow up US planes. They took no chances with leaks as operational security was of paramount importance:

Several sources suggested last week that the extensive secrecy irritated some officials who were kept out of the loop at intelligence and law enforcement agencies, but declined to discuss the tensions in detail. Michael P. Jackson, Homeland Security's deputy secretary, said the secrecy "wasn't controversial. It was operational security."

Chertoff was right to keep the loop small even if it did hurt some feelings. The NY Times would've written about this in a second if they had gotten wind of it from someone in the know.

It's also about time that the TSA got some good reviews. They are a good organization that takes a beating whenever some idiot screener makes a mistake.

In other news, the Brits got the al-Qaeda chief who running the show in England.

The looney side of the blogosphere ia all agog over this MSNBC piece:

LONDON - NBC News has learned that U.S. and British authorities had a significant disagreement over when to move in on the suspects in the alleged plot to bring down trans-Atlantic airliners bound for the United States.

A senior British official knowledgeable about the case said British police were planning to continue to run surveillance for at least another week to try to obtain more evidence, while American officials pressured them to arrest the suspects sooner. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the case.

Of course this is proof to these idiots that Bush pushed the arrests up to get Lamont's win off the front pages or somesuch garbage. This misguided soul is a great example of the unseriousness and inanity of these people. They almost sound as if they are awaiting another terror incident to scream "I told you so!"

This explains why the US acted as they did. I know people who work in the business and they reacted as they should:

Another U.S. official, however, acknowledges there was disagreement over timing. Analysts say that in recent years, American security officials have become edgier than the British in such cases because of missed opportunities leading up to 9/11.

Exactly. The same people who claimed that Bush should've stopped 9/11 are the ones who are screaming that he acted too soon this time.

Just another example of why these people should never be allowed back in power.