THE SPYMASTERS CIA IN THE CROSSHAIRS TRANSCRIPT AS AIRED - SHOWTIME NOV. 28, 2015

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 06714251
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 45
• Document Creation Date: March 9, 2023
• Document Release Date: May 4, 2021
• Case Number: F-2016-00764
• Publication Date: November 28, 2015

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1
2 THE, SPYMASTERS
3 CIA IN THE CROSSHAIRS
4
5 TRANtCRIPTAS AIRED SHOWTIME NOV. 28, 2015,
6
7 THE SPYMASTERS
8 AS AIRED 12/28/15: ACTS ONE - NINE
9 ACT ONE
10 1.
11 LEON PANETTA:
12
13 Lower third
14 Leon Panetta
15 CIA Director
16
17 That memory of going to Arlington to bury one of my officers from the CIA
18 Elizabeth Hanson is one that will be with me fc -4m= They put their
19 lives on the line to serve this country and thz
20 2
21 LEON PANETTA:
22
23 Chyron
24 Khost, Afghanistan
25 December 30, 2009
26 I knew that the CIA officers were there becau
27 had to bear some of the responsibility for ha
28 3.
29
30
31
32
33 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Initial reports indi
34 by the CIA as a source_
35
36 NEWS REPORTER: This was the worst, single :
37 when a truck bomber blew up the American em
38 4
39 LEON PANETTA:
40 This person obviously turned out to be a dc
41 as well as our officers.
42 5.
43 LEON PANETTA:
44 It's hard to find the words when suddenly
45 officers have been killed and others seric
46 mind was the families -out there, who with!
47 informed that someone who, who they loved,
48 6.
49 LEON PANETTA:
50 We spent a lot of time trying to figure c
51 button.
52 7.
53 LEON.PANETTA:
54 We have a lot of sources that we rely on, spies. And so we immediately asked the
55 question, "Who the hell was involved in ,this tragic suicide bombing?" We were
56 able to get pretty good intelligence.-
57 8
58 LEON PANETTA:
59 And so, we knew who the individual was. This was a bad guy. And he was clearly
60 a leader. Had been involved, not only in going after our officers, but in.
61 killing members of our own forces in Afghanistan.
62 9
63 LEON PANETTA:
64 And it was on the day of Elizabeth Hanson's funeral that I got a call from our
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1
2 THE SPYMASTERS
3 CIA IN THE CROSSHAIRS
4
5 TRANSCRIPT AS AIRED - SHOWtIME NOV. 28, 2015
6
7 THE SPYMASTERS
8 AS AIRED 12/28/15: ACTS ONE - NINE
9 ACT ONE
10 1.
11 LEON PANETTA:
12
13 Lower third
14 Leon Panetta
15 CIA Director
16
17 That memory of going to Arlington to bury one of my officers from the CIA
18 Elizabeth Hanson is one that will be with me for a long time. They put their
19 lives on the line to serve this country and that's what Elizabeth Hanson did.
20 2
21 LEON PANETTA:
22
23 Chyron
24 Khost, Afghanistan
25 December 30, 2009
26 I knew that the CIA officers were there because I ordered them to be there. I
27 had to bear some of the responsibility for having taken this risk.
28 3
29
30
31
32
33 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Initial reports indicate the bomber was being recruited
34 by the CIA as a source_
35
36 NEWS REPORTER: This was the worst, single loss of life for the CIA since 1983
37 when a truck bomber blew up the American embassy.
38 4
39 LEON PANETTA:
40 This person obviously turned out to be a double agent and had blown himself up,
41 as well as our officers.
42 5.
43 LEON PANETTA:
44 It's hard to find the words when suddenly you're told that seven of your
45 officers have been killed and others seriously wounded. What went through my
46 mind was the families out there, who within a few hours were going to be
47 informed that someone who, who they loved, had been killed.
48 6
49 LEON PANETTA:
50 We spent a lot of time trying to figure out who were the ones who pushed that
51 button.
52 7.
53 LEON PANETTA:
54 We have a lot of sources that we rely on, spies. And so we immediately asked the
55 question, "Who the hell was involved in this tragic suicide bombing?" We were
56 able to get pretty good intelligence.
57 8
58 LEON PANETTA: '
59 And so, we knew who the individual was. This was a bad guy. And he was clearly
60 a leader. Had been involved, not only in going after our officers, but in
61 killing members of our own forces in Afghanistan.
62 9.
63 LEON PANETTA:
64 And it was on the day of Elizabeth Hanson's funeral that I got a call from our
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1 operations center. They thought they had pretty good information about where
2 this individual was
3 10.
4 LEON PANETTA:
5 Unfortunately, this individual had family and wife and children around him, and,
6 so one of the tough questions was, you know, "what should we do?"
7
8 11.
9 CHYRON
10 Archive
11 NAT SOT: RADIO COMMANDS: Standby. Do not engage. Do not engage the mosque.
12 Roger.
13 12.
14 LEON PANETTA:
15 If there were woman and children in the shot, we normally would not take the
16 shot. I remember calling the yhite House. And they were aware how tough a
17 decision this is. And basically said, "Look, you know, you're goinq to have to,
18 malamenthere. So, I knew at that point that i.twab9_a_slagjaW:L_th
19 have to I mean, I'm the one who's going to have to say Hail Marys
20 here.
21 13.
22 LEON PANETTA:
23 I was raised a Catholic, I believe in my faith and I rely a great deal on my
24 faith, you know, throughout my life. I've always carried a rosary and always
25 said a helluva lot of Hail Marys uh in tough situations.
26
27 14.
28 LEON PANETTA:
29
30
31
32
33
34 CHYRON
35 The CIA has never acknowledged that it operates lethal drones.
36
37
38
39 And suddenly, you know, I found that I was making decisions on life and death as
40 director. And those decisions are never easy, and frankly they shouldn't be
41 easy. I felt it was really important in that job to do what I could to protect
42 this country.
43
44 so I passed on the word. I said, if you can isolate the indlvidual and take the
45 shot without impacting on women or children, then do it. But if you have no
46 alternative and it looks like he might get away, uh then, take the shot.
47 15.
48 CHYRON
49 Archive
50 NAT SOT: RADIO COMMANDS: Let's go. Roll it in. Wildfire - we're cleared on the
51 building. We're cleared on the big square building. Go ahead and level it.
52 Roger that. Direct hits right there.
53 16.
54 LEON PANETTA:
55 And it did involve collateral damage, but we got him.
56 17.
57
58 NAT SOT: It's done.
59 18.
60 LEON PANETTA:
61 These are tough decisions, and you're damn right they are tough decisions. But
62 you know this is a war. This is a war. 9/11...these people didn't hesitate a
63 moment to kill 3,000 people and take down the Trade Centers and hit the
64 Pentagon. These are individuals that would not hesitate to attack us again. In
2
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1 the end, what you do I think has to be based on what your guts tell you is
2 right. That's really what it's all about. You have to be true to yourself as to
3 what you think is right and hope that ultimately God agrees with you.
4
5 ACT TWO
6 "I wish the world were simpler"
7
8
9 NARRATION:
10 INSIDE THE CIA...
11 1.
12 JOHN BRENNAN:.
13 I'm forced to make decisions every day.
14 2.
15 NARRATION:
16 DIRECTOR JOHN BRENNAN CARRIES THE BURDEN OF COMMAND...
17 3.
18 JOHN BRENNAN:
19 A lot of decisions.that we recognize. have risks associated with them,
20 significant risks, that sometimes can result in deaths.
21 4.
22
23 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: The CIA's actions a decade ago are a stain on our
24 value and on our history.
25 5.
26
27 NAT SOT: JOHN MCCAIN: You can't claim that tying someone to the floor and having
28 them freeze to death is not torture.
29 6
30
31 NAT SOT: DICK CHENEY: Torture was what the al Qaeda terrorists did to 3,000
32 Americans on 9/11.
33 7
34 JOHN BRENNAN:
35 I wish the world were simpler. I wish we didn't have these complex challenges
36 that we face, where there is not a right and wrong answer, where it's not black
37 and white.
38
39 8
40 JOHN BRENNAN:
41 On those days when I'm thinking about the things that worry me most, there is.
42 the biological agent, there is the devastating strategic type of terrorist
43 attack. Because we know that these individuals are so determined to cause as
44 much havoc and destruction and death as possible.
45 9.
46 JOHN BRENNAN:
47 How do you deal with this phenomenon that we're facing as far as terrorism -
48 like ISIS and their wanton murderous activities?
49 10.
50
51 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: ISIS rules with brutality and fear, publicly executing
52 those who offend its strict version of Islamic law.
53 11.
54 JOHN BRENNAN:
55 Well, we can let these terrorist organizations thrive and not take action
56 against them or we can try to take action that's going to disrupt their plans.
57 12.
58 NARRATION:
59
60 IN A CONFLICT AGAINST A RUTHLESS ENEMY, WHAT ARE THE RULES FOR AMERICA'S
61 SPYMASTERS?
62 13.
63
64
NAT SOT: COMMANDS: Vehicle...you are now free to engage the moving vehicle.
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1 14.
2 NARRATION:
3 DOES THE CIA GO TOO FAR -
4 15.
5
6 NAT SOT: Unintelligible commands.
7 16
8 NARRATION:
9 OR NOT FAR ENOUGH?
10 17. �
11 GEORGE TENET:
12 Killing people, no matter how bad they are, is not something that should ever
13 rest easily in anybody's soul or in anybody's brain.
14
15 18.
16 GEORGE TENET:
17
18 LOWER THIRD
19 George Tenet
20 Director, Clinton and George W. Bush Administration
21 Sometimes I think we get ourselves, into a,frenzy�into believing that killing is
22 the only answer to a problem. And the truth is, it's not.
23 19.
24 NARRATION:
25 ONLY 12 MEN ALIVE TODAY HAVE MADE THE LIFE AND DEATH DECISIONS THAT COME WITH
26 RUNNING THE WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.
27 20.
28 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
29 Let me bare my soul just a little bit more_
30 21.
31 NARRATION:
32 THE KEEPERS OF AMERICA'S SECRETS - THE SPYMASTERS - AND THEIR TOP OPERATIVES
33 SHARE THEIR CONVICTIONS AND, FOR THE FIRST TIME, THEIR PASSIONATE
34 DISAGREEMENTS _ABOUT THE AGENCY'S PAST, ITS CURRENT MISSION... AND ITS FUTURE. IT
35 IS A BATTLE FOR THE SOUL�OF THE CIA.
36 22.
37 LEON PANETTA:
38
39 When you're confronting an enemy that's 'prepared to blow up and kill innocent
40 men, women and children, you have to go at them using the capabilities that we
41 have. For me that's the basic rule: Do we protect our people or do we not
42 protect them?
43 23.
44 NARRATION:
45 DID THE WHITE HOUSE IGNORE THE CIA'S WARNINGS ABOUT 9/11?
46
47 24.
48 GEORGE TENET:
49 3,000 Americans had been killed. There was an emotional piece of this. 'Cause we
50 had woken up every day of our lives trying to stop what just had happened.
51 25.
52 NARRATION:
53 WHAT'S FAIR GAME AGAINST TERRORISTS HELL-BENT ON ATTACKING US AGAIN? BLACK
54 SITES, INDEFINITE DETENTION?
55
56 26.
57 JOHN DEUTCH:
58
59 LOWER THIRD
60 John Deutch
61 Director, Clinton Administration
62 You're director of central intelligence and somebody comes forward and says to
63 you we got these bad guys, we know they're bad guys. What would you like us to
64 do with them? Well the old traditional way would have been to put them in the
4
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1 back of the truck and shoot 'em. Well that's not a very good idea, is it?
2 27
3 NARRATION:
4 ARE BRUTAL INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES EVER ACCEPTABLE?
5 28
6
7 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORT: The Senate report has publically revealed graphic new
8 details.
9
10 NEWS REPORT: ...and the report says detainees were kept in total darkness,
11 shackled to the wall in 45 degree temperatures.
12 29.
13 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
14
15 LOWER THIRD
16 Michael Hayden
17 Director, George W. Bush Administration
18 We were asked to do some very hard things. Are we happy we did them? Of course
19 not. Would we do them again? I would hope so if we found ourselves in those
20 circumstances.
21 30.
22 STANSFIELD TURNER:
23
24 LOWER THIRD
25 Stansfield Turner
26 Director, Carter Administration
27 I just don't think a country like ours should be culpable of conducting torture.
28 I just think it's beneath our dignity. I think it's poor for our reputation and
29 the world.
30 31.
31 GEORGE TENET:
32 I'm not going to ever accept the use of the word torture in front of what
33 happened here. I'm not going to fall to that.
34 32.
35 NARRATION:
36 HAS THE CIA BECOME A SECRET ARMY, A KILLING MACHINE?
37 33.
38 ROBERT GATES:
39 LOWER THIRD
40 Robert Gates
41 Director, George H. W. Bush Administration
42 You're sitting there in the middle of nowhere in Nevada and you're looking at a
43 screen that is televising what looks for all the world like a big video game and
44 push a button and a pickup truck explodes half a world away.
45 34.
46 GEORGE HW BUSH:
47
48 LOWER THIRD
49 President George H. W. Bush
50 Director, Ford Administration.
51 I mean, if they're bad guys and they're doing us harm, I have no problem with
52 that.
53
54 35.
55 MICHAE HAYDEN:
56 Now the dark side. You know, you can't be perfect. There is collateral damage.
57 36.
58
59 NAT SOT: People crying out after drone attack.
60 37.
61 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
62 We feed the jihadi recruitment video that these Americans are heartless killers.
63 38.
64 LEON PANETTA:
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1 We may have to use these kinds of weapons, but in the end_let me tell you
2 something. If we fail to do this and God forbid this country faced another 9/11.
3 You know what the first question would be-why. the hell did you let this happen?
4 Why the hell did you let this happen?
5
6 ACT THREE
7 "They're coming here"
8 1
9 GINA BENNETT:
10 If you are a terrorism analyst for long enough, you will have many moments where
11 you will feel responsible. Responsible for not having stayed long enough, not
12 having stayed late enough, not having thought hard enough. Not having plowed
13 through enough data to connect those proverbial dots. And you'll see on the
14 other end of that, individuals who are hurt or killed.
15 2
16 GINA BENNETT:
17
18
19 PORTRAIT
20 Gina Bennett
21 Sr. Counterterrorism Analyst
22 Bin Laden Unit
23 I gave birth to my first son in what was a very emergency C-section. He was
24 quite early. I was lying down in my hospital bed. Still trying to get over some
25 of the pain. My phone rang and I heard my boss (LAUGH) screaming on the other
26 end, "Your people did this, your people did this." And I had no idea what she
27 was talking about, but I knew she meant something bad had happened.
28
29 3.
30 GINA BENNETT:
31 And I turned on the television and I saw, and I knew what she meant.
32 4.
33 NARRATION:
34 FEBRUARY 26, 1993.
35 5.
36
37 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: We heard a tremendous explosion. The entire building_
38 6
39 NARRATION:
40 IN AN'UNDERGROUND GARAGE IN NEW YORK CITY, A VAN PACKED WITH EXPLOSIVES
41 DETONATES - KILLING SIX PEOPLE AND INJURING MORE THAN A THOUSAND. IT WOULD BE
42 THE FIRST ATTACK ON THE WORLD TRADE CENTER.
43 7
44
45 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: The fact is, at this hour, police simply don't know who
46 did this or why.
47 8.
48 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
49
50 LOWER THIRD
51 John McLaughlin
52 Acting Director, George W. Bush Administration
53 The big message that comes out of the 1993 Trade Center bombing is that-- a
54 threshold has been crossed. They've hit us here. But you know thinking back on
55 it. I'm not sure that message was as powerfully absorbed as we can see it in
56 retrospect.
57 9.
58 NARRATION:
59 THE TRAIL WOULD LEAD TO A SHADOWY NETWORK OF JIHADISTS IN AFGHANISTAN-'THAT THE
60 WORLD WOULD COME TO KNOW AS AL QAEDA_AND A CHARISMATIC SAUDI MULTI-MILLIONAIRE.-
61 10
62 GINA BENNETT:
63
64
I had likened Osama bin Laden at the time to-- I know this is horrible to say,
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1 but to Donald Trump. You know, he was like the Donald Trump of the terrorism
2 underworld. He had the wherewithal and a vision that was clearly controversial
3 and different from everybody (LAUGH) else, but, you know, the tenacity to follow
4 it. I definitely drew a lot of snickers-from my-- from my colleagues who thought
5 I was making a mountain out of a molehill and blowing him out of proportion.
6 11
7 NARRATION:
8 AUGUST 7, 1998.
9 12.
10
11 NAT SOUND: CHAOS AFTER BOMBINGS
12 13.
13 NARRATION:
14 SUICIDE TRUCK BOMBERS STRIKE AMERICAN EMBASSIES IN TANZANIA AND KENYA, EAST
15 AFRICA. 224 PEOPLE LIE DEAD - TWO OF THEM CIA OFFICERS.
16 14.
17 GEORGE TENET:
18 After the East Africa bombings, I sat at home and furiously drafted a memo
19 called We're at War.
20 15.
21 GEORGE TENET:
22 PORTRAIT
23 George Tenet
24 Director 1997-2004
25 Enough swatting at flies. We need to put a worldwide plan in place where we can
26 start demonstrating that we can penetrate this adversary, get into the
27 sanctuary, penetrate his major operational hubs, and set us up for really
28 providing policymakers with'hard intelligence with which they could make
29 decisions. �
30 16.
31 NARRATION:
32 COFER BLACK, A LEGENDARY OPERATIVE, HAD ESCAPED AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT BY AL
33 QAEDA WHILE SERVING IN KHARTOUM.
34 17.
35 COFER BLACK:
36
37 PORTRAIT
38 Cofer Black
39 Director, Counterterrorism Center
40 1999-2002
41
42 The first week that I was in the counter terrorism center, new chief comes in,
43 they stick you in a conference room and all the people start coming in and
44 briefing you on their areas of activity. I don't shock easy. But I was shocked.
45 This was a, wave of threats coming at the United States. There was no doubt in my
46 mind that the United States was going to be struck and struck hard. Lots of
47 Americans were going to die.
48 18.
49 GEORGE TENET:
50 Sandy Berger, the national security advisor at the end of the Clinton
51 administration, asked us for a very important piece of paper. We called it the
52 Blue Sky Paper. He said, "I want you to imagine that you had all the
53 authorities you needed and all the resources you needed to take down al-Qaeda.
54 What would you do?" getting into the Afghan sanctuary, launching a paramilitary
55 - operation. We knew exactly what to do. We were ready to do it.
56 19.
57 COFER BLACK:
58 The important part is - no action was taken. It was not advanced.
59 20.
60 NARRATION:
61 AS AL QAEDA GROWS MORE LETHAL, CIA DIRECTOR GEORGE TENET FACES A TEST THAT WILL
62 DEFINE HIS PLACE IN HISTORY: CAN THE CIA STOP BIN LADEN_ BEFORE HE STRIKES THE
63 UNITED STATES AGAIN?
64 21.
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1 GEORGE TENET:
2 On September 28th, 2000 - we were testing-- drones over Afghanistan-- when we
3 saw a very tall man in white robes who we assumed at the time was bin Laden.
4 22
5 COFER BLACK:
6 I mean - I love this. This is such a Washington thing. Our instructions were to
7 capture him. And that's what we -- attempted to do. And the difference between
8 capturing, I would think, and the alternative, is significant. And the gap is
9 large.
10 23.
11 GEORGE TENET:
12 Killing bin Laden in the time period we operated was never an option. Because
13 the attorney general of the United States made it abundantly clear that he could
14 only be killed in the context of a capture operation.
15 24
16
17
18
19
20
21 GEORGE TENET:
22
23
24 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Did you tell the White House, did you tell Janet Reno, "Look, you
25 don't get it. We have to kill this guy. We have to take him down"?
26
27 No. I'll tell you why. I have an institutional responsibility - I play in a
28 process where the president of the United States and the attorney general have
29 to accept responsibility for the actions we're gonna take.
30 25
31 NARRATION:
32 BUT THE EAST AFRICA BOMBINGS IN 1998 HAD CHANGED THE CALCULUS FOR PRESIDENT BILL
33 CLINTON. HE LAUNCHED CRUISE MISSILE STRIKES IN AN EFFORT TO KILL BIN LADEN. BUT
34 THEY MISSED.
35 26
36 COFER BLACK:
37 The Clinton Ad�Administration spent eight years learning to appreciate this
38 threat. And only at the very end did they get it.
39 27.
40
41 NAT SOT: President Bush: I, George Walker Bush, do solemnly swear that I will
42 faithfully execute the office of President of the United States.
43 28.
44 GEORGE TENET:
45 There's no doubt that policymakers across two administrations understood from
46 me, and understood from Cofer and all of our analysts and people who briefed
47 them, understood the magnitude of the threat in front of them.
48 29
49 GEORGE TENET:
50
51 In the spring of 2001, we submitted authorities to the incoming Bush
52 administration, and essentially advocating a paramilitary operation. And the
53 word back was-- "We're not quite ready to consider this. We don't want the
54 clock to start ticking."
55 30
56
57
58 GEORGE TENET:
59 CHRIS WHIPPLE: What did that mean to you?
60 That the administration was not quite ready to consider what its options were
61 with regard to terrorism.
62 31.
63 COFER BLACK:
64 I think they were mentally stuck back eight years ago, when they were in power
8
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1 they were used to terrorists being euro lefties�drink champagne by night, blow
2 things up during the day and it was a very difficult sell to communicate the
3 urgency to this.
4 32.
5 Chyron
6 Afghanistan
7 Summer of 2001
8
9 33.
10 GINA BENNETT:
11 For us the system was blinking red in the sense that we thought what we were
12 uncovering was a top-down plot. Something being ordered from Afghanistan out.
13 But it was very difficult for us to figure out what it was.
14 34.
15 NARRATION:
16
17 CHYRON
18 CIA Headquarters
19 Langley, Va.
20
21 THE CRISIS COMES TO A HEAD ON JULY 10, 2001. RICHARD BLEE, THE HEAD OF THE BIN
22 LADEN UNIT, BARGES INTO COFER BLACK'S OFFICE.
23 35
24 COFER BLACK:
25 He comes and he goes, "Okay, roof's fallen in." I said, "Great. Whatcha got?"
26 36.
27 COFER BLACK:
28 The information that we had now compiled was absolutely compelling. It was
29 multiple-sourced. It was sort of the -- the last straw.
30 37.
31 COFER BLACK:
32 Picked up the phone, called the secretary, "have to see the director, I'm coming
33 up with Rich." She says, 'well, I'm sorry, he's in with the head of some foreign
34 intelligence service'. I said, 'we're comin' up, kick the guy out, we're coming
35 now. Tell him to get ready."
36 38.
37 COFER BLACK:
38 George Tenet is a very smart guy. Chewing on his cigar, going back and forth,
39 jumping up and down. His eyes are flashing. Wish I had a film of it, you know.
40 He got it alright.
41 39.
42 GEORGE TENET:
43 It's not just red lights, red lights and chatter is a convenient way this is
44 portrayed. There were real plots being manifested. The American embassy in
45 Sana'a is gonna be bombed, British and American schools in Jeddah are gonna be
46 bombed the world was on the edge of eruption. Now what happens then in this
47 period of time in June and July, the threat continues to rise. Public
48 pronouncements by people in al Qaeda was there would be eight major celebrations
49 coming. The world was gonna be stunned by what would soon happen. Terrorists
50 were disappearing. Camps were closing. Threat reporting's on the rise. And
51 this started building to a crescendo.
52
53 40
54 COFER BLACK:
55 We decided the next thing to do was pick up the White phone, call the White
56 House - we're coming down right now.
57 41.
58 GEORGE TENET:
59
60 I said, "Condi, I have to come see you." It was one of the rare times in my
61 seven years as director where I said, "I have to come see you. We're comin'
. 62 right now."
�% 63 42. �
64 NARRATION:
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1 PRESENT AT THE JULY 10 WHITE HOUSE MEETING ARE NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR
2 CONDOLEEZZA RICE AND OTHER TOP OFFICIALS.
3 43.
4 GEORGE TENET:
5 So, Rich started by saying-- "There will be significant terrorist attacks
'6 against the United States in the coming weeks or months. The attacks will be
7 spectacular. They may be multiple. Al-Qaeda's intention is the destruction of
8 the United States."
9 44.
10 COFER BLACK:
11 And I said, "This country's gotta. go on a war footing now." I slammed my hand
12 on the table.
13 45. .
14 COFER BLACK:
15 After it was over, Rich Blee and I sort of congratulated each other in the sense
16. that, "I think we've finally gotten through to these people. We have executed
17 our responsibilities."
18 46.
19
20
21 COFER BLACK:
22
23
24 COFER BLACK:
25 CHRIS WHIPPLE: What happened?
26 Yeah. What did happen? Yeah. What happened?
27 CHRIS WHIPPLE:. Essentially, nothing happened?
28 Yeah, that's right.
29 47
30 NARRATION:
31 CONDOLEEZZA RICE WOULD LATER WRITE THAT HER MEMORY OF THE MEETING WAS 'NOT VERY
32 CRISP BECAUSE WE WERE DISCUSSING THE THREAT. EVERY DAY.' HAVING RAISED THE ALERT
33 LEVELS FOR U.S. PERSONNEL ABROAD, SHE ADDED: "I THOUGHT WE WERE DOING WHAT
34 NEEDED TO BE DONE."
35 48
36 GINA BENNETT:
37 If on the 10th of September we'd been able to walk into the President, of the
38 United States and say, "We think U.S. airliners are going to be hijacked
39 tomorrow," just think about it. If we had been able to give him that very
40 specific piece, as the president he may very well have held all the airliners
41 from flying, until when? We might have stopped 9/11 from happening on 9/11, but
42 I think it would've happened on the 10th of October or the 12th of November.
43 49.
44 GEORGE TENET:
45
46
47 If you don't put a system of defense-- in place. if you don't button up your
48 airports, button up your .buildings, change your visa policies, have some
49 knowledge about.what's going on in the United States, create a mechanism where
50 there's a m-- where there's a quick swivel between foreign and domestic, you're
51 gonna get hurt.
52 so.
53 COFER BLACK:
54 You know what really does piss me off? When people call this an intelligence
55 failure. We knew this was comin', you know. 'American interests gonna be
56 attacked. Could very well be in the United States. It's serious. It's coming.
57 sl.
58 COFER BLACK:
59 Sometimes when I drive my car I think about it. And to me it remains
60 incomprehensible still. I mean, how is it that you could warn senior people so
61 many times and nothing actually happened It's kind of like - sort of -Twilight
62 Zone. You almost sometimes feel like you want to pinch yourself.
63. 52.
64 GEORGE TENET:
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1 At the end of July, we were sitting in my conference room just thinking about
2 all of this and trying to figure out how this attack might occur. And I'll never
3 forget this till the day I die. Rich Blee looked at everybody and said,
4 "They're coming here." And the silence that followed was deafening. You could
5 hear a pin drop. They're coming here.
6
7 ACT FOUR
8 "A ticking time bomb every day"
9 1.
10 GEORGE TENET:
11 The head of my security detail came over to me to say a plane had hit one of the
12 towers of the World Trade Center. My instinctual reaction was, "This is al
13 Qaeda. I've gotta go."
14 2.
15
16 NAT SOT: NEWS SOT: There are fire crews just screaming into this area from every
17 conceivable direction_
18 3.
19 JOHN BRENNAN:
20 And we all looked around and we thought, "Oh my goodness. Tragic accident."
21 4.
22 COFER BLACK:
23 And people were talking about a private aircraft had flown into-- into the
24 Tower. I thought, "Geez, this must be the world's worst pilot."
25 5
26 GEORGE TENET:
27 I jumped in the car. It was the longest car ride. It took 12 minutes, but the
28 phones weren't working.
29 6.
30 JOHN BRENNAN:
31 Looking up at the-TV in real time, we saw the second plane hit the other tower.
32 We knew, we all knew, "We're under attack."
33 7.
34
35 NAT SOT: MONTAGE OF VOICES AS 9/11 UNFOLDS:
36
37
38 WOMAN: Holy shit, the first one we thought was an accident, when we heard there
39 was a second one we definitely thought it was terrorism... MAN: And I heard a
40 roar and I looked up and saw the second plane hit- NEWS REPORTER: Lots of people
41 were crying, holding on to each other_ MAN: I'm seeing bodies falling out of
42 buildings. WOMAN: They're jumping_
43
44 911 OPERATOR: Hold on one second please. WOMAN: I'm going to die aren't 1?
45 OPERATOR: No, no, no, no. WOMAN: I don't want to die. OPERATOR: Stay calm, stay
46 calm, stay calm, stay calm_you're doing good...
47
48 NAT SOT: And somebody said, my God they hit the Pentagon, they hit the Pentagon.
49
50 LOUD SPEAKER: Ladies and gentlemen let's keep move- away from the building.
51 Let's get away from the building ladies and gentlemen_
52 8
53 COFER BLACK:
54 So Director Tenet said, "Okay we have to evacuate headquarters."
55 9
56
57 NAT SOT: Everybody out, everybody out...
58 10.
59 COFER BLACK:
60 If they stay, they could die. I said, "We're needed. That's where computers are.
61 We need to respond If that's the case, then we'll just have to die."
62 11.
63 NARRATION:
64 THAT DAY, MICHAEL MORELL, THE PRESIDENT'S BRIEFER, IS WITH GEORGE W. BUSH IN
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1 FLORIDA.
2 12.
3 MICHAEL MORELL:
4
5 CHYRON
6 Sarasota-Bradenton Airport
7
8 CHYRON
9 Aboard Air Force One
10 September 11, 2001
11 It was our job to prevent an attack and we didn't do it. On our watch, this
12 happened. We went back to Air Force One. There was a ring of Secret Service
13 agents around Air Force One with automatic weapons. We took off. We went up at a
14 very steep ascent. And I remember saying to the President's military aide,
15 "Where are we going?" He said, "We're just going to be flying around for a bit
16 until we figure out what's going on." We were watching television images from
.17 New York and it was in there that we saw the two towers collapse.
18 13.
19
20 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Wait a second, is this a live picture? This is a live
21 picture. We're seeing the second World Trade Tower Center_World Trade Center
22 Tower number one just collapsed, ladies and gentlemen, you see it live in our.
23 picture_
24 14..
25
26 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT BUSH: Today, fellow citizens, our way of life, our very
27 freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts.
28 The victims were in airplanes _secretaries, business men and women, military and
29 federal_moms and dads, friends and neighbors- .
30
31 15.
32 GEORGE TENET:
33 The city I grew up in had been blown up. We all came to know people who died.
34 16.
35 COFER BLACK:
36 These are our people. Nobody comes to our town and messes with our people.
37 17.
38 MICHAEL MORELL:
39 In his office, on Air Force One, the President said to me, ."Michael who did
40 this?" And I said, "Mr. President, both Iran and Iraq have absolutely nothing to
41 gain and have everything to lose from doing this. I would bet my children's
42 future that this is al Qaeda. This is bin Laden."
43 18.
44
45 NAT SOT: OSAMA BIN LADEN
46 19.
47 GEORGE TENET:
48 And certainly, looking at the flight Manifests that corroborated the fact that
49 it had been al Qaeda.
50 20.
51 NARRATION:
52 IT TAKES ONLY MOMENTS TO DISCOVER WHAT HAS BEEN YEARS IN THE MAKING. THERE IN
53 BLACK AND WHITE, ON THE PASSENGER MANIFEST OF THE PLANE THAT HIT THE PENTAGON,
54 ARE KNOWN AL QAEDA TERRORISTS - NAWAF AL HAZMI AND KHALID AL MIDHAR.
55 21.
56
57 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Two of the hijackers on board the airliner which
58 attacked the Pentagon had been identified more than a year and a half before as
59 suspected terrorists, yet nothing was done to stop Al-Hazmi and Al-Midhar from
60 entering the U.S. and no. attempt was made to find them until just three weeks
61 before September 11th.
62 22. .
63
64
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1
2 GEORGE TENET:
3 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Why didn't CIA, why didn't somebody pick up the phone to FBI and
4 say, "hey, these two guys are here?"
5
6 At root here is we didn't have the seamless interaction. We didn't have the
7 ability to fuse things quickly. Our policies were out of date.
8 23.
9 MICHAEL MORELL:
10
11 LOWER THIRD
12 Michael Morell
13 Acting Director, Obama Administration
14 The information that the CIA had about the two hijackers in the United States
15 should have been routinely shared with the FBI and it wasn't.
16 24.
17 NARRATION:
18 TWO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, CHARGED WITH PROTECTING THE UNITED STATES, WERE BARELY
19 COMMUNICATING.
20 25.
21
22 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Intelligence officials acknowledge both the CIA and FBI
23 failed to follow up on leads that could have pointed them in the direction of
24 the 9/11 hijackers.
25 26.
26 GEORGE TENET:
27 In essence, al Qaeda being a smart intelligence organization looked at our
28 banking policies, our border policies, our airline protection policies, our
�29 infrastructure policies. And came to a conclusion that the country was
30 absolutely unprotected.
31 27.
32
33 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORT: I think there's huge failures at the CIA and the FBI.
34
35 NEWS REPORTER: The CIA missed the chance to nab two suspects after they entered
36 the United States.
37
38 THOMAS KEAN: Our government failed to protect the American people.
39 28.
40 COFER BLACK:
41 An elected official came up to me and said, "So Cofer how does it feel to be
42 responsible for the largest intelligence failure since Pearl Harbor?"
43 29.
44
45 NAT SOT: CBS NEWS SPECIAL REPORT THOMAS KEAN: This was a failure of policy,
46 management, capability and above all, a failure of imagination. None of the
47 measures adopted by the United States government before 9/11 disturbed or even
48 delayed the progress of the al Qaeda plot.
49 30.
50 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
51 Above all else, 9/11 was a failure of our imagination. We all knew something was
52 going to happen. We just found it very, very hard to conceive that what
53 happened on that day was going to happen.
54 31.
55 MICHAEL MORELL:
56 I've never liked this "failure of imagination" thing. I think 9/11 is a national
57 failure. It actually took 9/11 for the American people to get to the point where
58 they would agree with all the defensive measures that needed to be put in place.
59 32
60
61
62
63 GEORGE TENET:
64 CHRIS WHIPPLE: There was never a moment in all of this time when you blamed
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1 yourself?
2
3 Well, look, there, I'm-- I-- I still look at the ceiling at night about a lotta
4 things. And I'll keep them to myself forever. But-- w-- we're all human beings.
5 33.
6 GEORGE TENET:
7 I do remember - t he whole emotional impact of 9/11 struck me very hard as I sat
8 on my front lawn after Thanksgiving one day. The horror of what happened hit me.
9 There was no time between 9/11 and that moment. I just didn't have any time.
10 34
11 NARRATION:
12 NO TIME-BECAUSE THE CIA WOULD NOW BE CALLED UPON TO PUT ITS WAR PLAN AGAINST AL
13 QAEDA INTO ACTION - THAT AUDACIOUS 'BLUE SKY' MEMO THAT HAD BEEN IGNORED BEFORE
14 9/11.
15 35.
16 GEORGE TENET:
17 On September the 15th, we essentially outline our plan, seal the borders of
18 Afghanistan, go after their leadership, shut off their money, destroy al Qaeda.
19 36
20 COFER BLACK:
21 We're saying, "Take our plan. Let us go first." And I said, "Mr. President, when
22 we're done, these guys are gonna have flies walkin' across their eyeballs." And
23 I could see the president was thinking, "Wait, flies on eyeballs, w--" then he
24 got it. And he says, "We'll use the CIA plan. CIA will be first boots on the
25 ground.
26 37.
27 NARRATION:
28 110 CIA OFFICERS AND 390 SPECIAL FORCES SWEEP INTO THE TRIBAL AREAS...
29 38.
30
31' NAT SOT: RADIO COMMANDS: Niner-four-five-over. Over. Copy that.
32 39
33 NARRATION:
34 WHERE THEY WILL JOIN WITH WARRIORS OF THE NORTHERN ALLIANCE_ AND UPROOT THE
35 TALIBAN AND AL QAEDA FROM THEIR SAFE HOLD IN AFGHANISTAN.
36 40.
37
38 NAT SOT: Unintelligible communication.
39 41.
40 NARRATION:
41 THE CIA'S MESSAGE: IF YOU ARE WITH US YOU'LL BE REWARDED...
42 42.
43 GEORGE TENET:
44 Our officers often slept on millions of dollars of cash at night.
45 43.
46 NARRATION:
47 BUT IF YOU ARE AGAINST US...
48
49 44.
50 GEORGE TENET:
51 You were more than likely to get a 2,000 pound bomb down your throat. There was
52 never a general on the ground. There was never a command structure on the
53 ground. This was a real counterinsurgency.
54 45.
55
56 NAT SOUND: GUN SHOTS, RADIO: We got the airplanes on that target first. Over.
57 We're not seeing any Taliban at this time. Over.
58 46.
59 COFER BLACK:
60 In about 9 weeks, all cities controlled by the Taliban had been overthrown. All
61 al Qaeda in Afghanistan had either been killed, captured, were running for the
62 border, or crossed the border.
63 47.
64 NARRATION:
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1 BIN LADEN'S SANCTUARY - TORA BORA - IS BLOWN TO PIECES. BUT THE CIA'S LIGHTNING
2 VICTORY IS FLEETING_ BECAUSE THE TERRORIST LEADER CROSSES THE BORDER INTO
3 PAKISTAN-AND DISAPPEARS.
4 48.
5 MICHAEL MORELL:
6 I'm not sure I ever saw the President get mad except this one occasion. And um,
7 he was furious.
8 49.
9 NARRATION:
10 AND NOW THE AGENCY'S FINEST HOUR IS ABOUT TO BE FOLLOWED BY ONE OF ITS DARKEST
11 CHAPTERS: BECAUSE THE WHITE HOUSE IS EYEING ANOTHER TARGET: IRAQ.
12 so.
13
14 NAT SOT: VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has
15 weapons of mass destruction.
16
17 VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: And he had established relationship with al Qaeda.
18
19 VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: There was a relationship between al Qaeda and Iraq that
20 stretched back ten years. That's not something .I thought of - that's what the
21 director of central intelligence was telling us.
22 sl.
23 GEORGE TENET:
24 This connection did not exist. We intervened on numerous occasions to say so.
25 Everybody knew what our point of view was.
26 52.
27 GEORGE TENET:
28 And I remember once going .to the president and saying, "Look-- this has gotta
29 stop. We can't support this language. .
30 53.
31 MICHAEL MORELL:
32 Neither CIA nor any other government agency ever found any evidence that Iraq
33 played any role at all in 9/11.
34 54.
35 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
36
37 LOWER THIRD
38 John McLaughlin
39 Acting Director, George W. Bush Administration
40 We stuck with that view - Saddam was not involved in 9/11.
41 55.
42 NARRATION:
43 BUT ON THE CENTRAL QUESTION: DOES SADDAM HUSSEIN'HAVE WEAPONS OF MASS
44 DESTRUCTION? THE CIA'S ANSWER IS YES. IN THE OVAL OFFICE DIRECTOR TENET
45 REASSURES GEORGE W. BUSH - WITH A METAPHOR THAT BECOMES INFAMOUS.
46 56
47 GEORGE TENET:
48 I said we can make this better, it's a slam dunk.
49 57.
50
51 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: It was Tenet who assured President Bush the question of
52 Iraq having weapons of mass destruction was a slam dunk.
53
54 NEWS REPORT: A quote, 'slam dunk.'
55 58.
56 GEORGE TENET:
57 Now the way it was portrayed was this was the seminal moment in the president's
58 life in terms of deciding whether to go to war or not. And that's not what
59 happened at all. The decision to go to war and-- orders to send troops had
60 already been signed. I mean, we - we were way down the road here. What I wanted
61 to convey is ,there was probably a better way for us to make this a better public
62 case.
63
64
59.
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1 NARRATION:
2 THAT PUBLIC CASE TO GO TO WAR WILL BE MADE BY SECRETARY OF STATE COLIN POWELL IN
3 A PIVOTAL SPEECH VETTED BY THE CIA AND GEORGE TENET.
4 60
5 GEORGE TENET:
6- We worked as hard as we knew how to make sure that the Secretary was going to
7 speak to the world on the basis on the truth as we understood it. Now, we were
8 also living in a time period where there was no outside intelligence service or
9 experts or anybody who believed he did not have weapons of mass destruction.
10 61
11
12 NAT SOT: COLIN POWELL: We know that Saddam Hussein is determined to keep his
13 weapons of mass destruction; he's determined to make more. Leaving Saddam
14 Hussein in possession of weapons of mass destruction for a few more months or
15 years is not an option.
16 62.
17 NARRATION:
18 AND COLIN POWELL MAKES A STARTLING CLAIM ABOUT BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS THAT COMES
19 FROM A DUBIOUS SOURCE...A SOURCE SOME IN THE CIA KNEW WAS UNRELIABLE.
20 63
21
22 NAT SOT: COLIN POWELL: We have first-hand descriptions of biological weapons
23 factories on wheels and on rails: He has the ability to dispense these lethal
24 poisons and diseases in ways that can cause massive death and destruction.
25 64.
26 GEORGE TENET:
27 It should've never been in the speech: This was an internal failure of some
28 proportions inside CIA. Our senior officer in Germany was writing cables in that
29 there were problems with the source, "Don't use this source." Never surfaced to
30 us, ever surfaced to us.
31 65.
32 GEORGE TENET:
33 You know, we let him down. And he knows how .I feel about all this.
34 66.
35
36 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT BUSH: My fellow citizens, at this hour, American and
37 coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq,
38 to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.
39 67
40
41 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORT: It's been 21 months since President Bush launched the
42 invasion of Iraq based in large part on the faulty intelligence that Saddam had
43 weapons of mass destruction.
44
45 NEWS REPORT: The Senate Intelligence Committee .has issued a scathing report on
46 CIA intelligence failures on the threat level of pre-war Iraq.
47
48 SEN. JOHN ROCKEFELLER: We went to war in Iraq based on false claims.
49 68
50 DAVID PETRAEUS:
51
52 LOWER THIRD
53 Gen. David Petraeus
54 We were all very surprised frankly that there were not weapons of mass
55 destruction found.
56 69
57 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
58 We got WMD very wrong.
59 70.
60 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
61
62 LOWER .THIRD
63 Michael Hayden
64 Director, George W. Bush Administration
16
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1 Our blame in this is not just that we were Wrong. We were and that's bad, but we
2 did not communicate our ambiguity, we did not communicate that we had anything
3 except full confidence in our estimates to the policy-makers and that's really
4 the issue.
5 71.
0 GEORGE TENET:
7 Our analysts were good and honest people. There's no political motivation here.
8 We basically came to those conclusions.
9 72.
10
11
12 GEORGE TENET:
13 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Nobody cooked the books?
14
15 No. Look - look, if we wanted to cook the books-- if you wanted to cook the
16 books all you needed to do was say-- "Ir-- Iraq was directly involved in 9/11."
17 Game, set, match point, over. We never did that. So we were wrong and we have
18 to take responsibility for that but at the end of the day policy makers need to
19 be a little bit more forthcoming about what their own motivations were. In this
20 instance perhaps, how to remake the Middle East.
21 73
22 NARRATION:
23 THE WAR RAGES ON FOR EIGHT YEARS- SEWING CHAOS AND DESTRUCTION ...
24 74.
25
26 NAT SOT: IRAQI MAN: No-electricity, no water_everybody is suffering.
27
28 IRAQI MAN AND WOMAN: My country - not British or American.
29 75
30 NARRATION:
31 AND LEAVING NEARLY 5,000 AMERICANS DEAD, 30,000 WOUNDED-.AND HUNDREDS OF
32 THOUSANDS OF IRAQIS KILLED.
33 76
34
35 NAT SOT: People crying out and pleading to Allah.
36 77.
37 ROBERT GATES:
38
39 LOWER THIRD
40 Robert Gates
41 Director, George H. W. Bush Administration
42 An intelligence failure, such as that that took place in 2003, changes history.
43
44
78
45 NARRATION:
46 RISING FROM THE ASHES OF IRAQ - A TERROR GROUP NOW KNOWN AS ISIS. RUTHLESS AND
47 BARBARIC. THEY WILL BE A FORMIDABLE ENEMY IN THE YEARS AHEAD- BUT IN THE
48 AFTERMATH OF 9/11 THE CIA FACES A MORE IMMEDIATE THREAT: AL QAEDA IS POISED TO
49 STRIKE AMERICA AGAIN. .
50 79.
51 GEORGE TENET:
52 We could not afford to be hit again. Everything that we hold dear was at risk.
53 ao.
54 LEON PANETTA:
, 55
56 LOWER THIRD
57 Leon Panetta
58 Director, Obama Administration
59
60 The greatest worry was if they were that committed to the attack that took place
61 on 9/11, uh and they had that much hate in them, would they resort to a nuclear
62 weapon someplace?
63
64
81.
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'1 GEORGE TENET:
2 After 9/11, we received a report from a foreign service that said that in August
3 of 2001, bin Laden and Zawahiri sat at a campfire with Pakistani nuclear
4 scientists representing a non-governmental organization. These- nuclear
5 scientists had talked to al Qaeda about the practicalities of developing a
6 nuclear weapons capability. The Pakistanis said, "Well, you know, the hard part
7 about this is acquiring the fissile material." And then, bin Laden looked at him
8 and said, "Well, what makes you think we don't already have it?"
9 82.
10 NARRATION:
11 THE CIA BELIEVES BIN LADEN HAS THE DESIGN, MATERIALS AND TARGET FOR A NUCLEAR
12 WEAPON.
13 83.
14 GEORGE TENET:
15 We began to receive reporting that al Qaeda had placed a nuclear weapon in New
16 York City.
17
18 84.
19 NARRATION:
20 INTELLIGENCE POINTS TO... SUBWAYS- BUILDINGS- BRIDGES- ALL TARGETED FOR
21 DESTRUCTION_ AND CHILLING EVIDENCE THAT THE EAST COAST OF AMERICA WAS NOT THE
22 ONLY TARGET AL QAEDA HAD CHOSEN.
23 85
24 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
25
26 LOWER THIRD
27 Jose Rodriguez
28 Director, Counterterrorism Center 2002-04
29 The 9/11 plot had also a plot to attack the West Coast of the U.S.
30 simultaneously using airplanes hijacked from Asia. Bin Laden turned down this
31 part of the operation 'cause he considered it too complicated.
32 86
33 NARRATION:
34 BUT NOW, THAT PLOT TO ATTACK AMERICA'S WEST COAST IS GIVEN NEW LIFE. THE CIA
35 GOES INTO OVERDRIVE, KNOWING THAT THE COST OF ANOTHER 9/11 WOULD BE BEYOND
36 MEASUREMENT.
37 87.
38 GEORGE TENET:
39 This period of time; with what we knew about their interest in weapons of mass
40 destruction and what we knew about the conventional threats that we were seeing
41 every day made it feel as if we were living a ticking time bomb every single day
42 for a period of three years.
43
44
45
46
47
48
49 ACT FIVE
50 "What do we do, Boss?"
51 1.
52 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
53 They never stopped plotting against us. We captured people all along for the
54 next ten years. And there was always a plot involved.
55 2
56 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
57
58 LOWER THIRD
59 Michael Hayden '
60 Director, George W. Bush Administration
61 Rashid Rauf was the Pakistani end of a plot going on in Great Britain called the
62 wide-body plot incredibly significant attack, multiple explosions on multiple.
63 wide-bodies almost simultaneously flying out of Great Britain to a variety of
64 cities in North America.
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1 3.
2 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
3 Can you imagine ten airplanes full of innocent people disappearing en route to
4 cities like New York, Washington, Miami - Chicago, Los Angeles, Montreal? It
5 would have rivaled 9/11.
6 4.
7 NARRATION:
8 BRITISH INTELLIGENCE- MIS - TRACKS RASHID RAUF'S AL QAEDA CELL, HIS PLANS, AND
9 HIS IMPROVISED WEAPONS OF DESTRUCTION.
10 5.
11 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
12 They had gathered up an awful lot of hydrogen peroxide in a homemde recipe,
13 turn it into an explosive and then put it into sports bottles. So we had great
14 concern on our side of the Atlantic about let's break this up. The British
15 wanted to build up as much physical evidence as possible. So we're saying, they
16 bought the hydrogen peroxide, they're saying we need to build up more evidence.
17 6.
18 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
19 The plotters had already selected the ten flights they were going to blow up.
20 And I said to myself, "This is imminent."
21 7.
22 NARRATION:
23 CHYRON
24 Islamabad, Pakistan
25 WITH THE LONDON PLOT HEATING UP, RAUF-IS IN PAKISTAN. AND SO IS THE CIA.
26 8
27 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
28 So now I'm on a trip in Pakistan in August 2006 with my head of National
29 Clandestine Service, Jose Rodriguez.
30 9
31 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
32 I was called in by the chief of the Pakistani Intelligence and told, "We may
33 have a chance to capture Rauf tonight. He's gonna go from Point A to Point B and
34 in between there is a police checkpoint. We can stop the bus and we can grab
35 him.
36 10.
37 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
38 Our headquarters personnel had pledged to MI5 that very day that we would not
39 capture Rauf. And I was told that Prime Minister - Blair had spoken with
40 President Bush that day. And they had agreed that they needed more time.
41 11.
42 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
43 I was sitting in the car with chief of station. He gets a call saying, "The bus
44 is coming. We need authorization to go in." And the chief of station turns to
45 me and says, "What do- we do, boss?"
46 12.
47 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
48 So Jose, in a very short period of time has to make a really big decision.
49 13.
50 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
51 If I took the time to call headquarters it would be the equivalent of saying no
52 to the operation.
53 14.
54 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
55 Had airplanes fallen from the sky I could see myself being hauled up to the
56 Congress. "Let me get this straight Mr. Rodriguez. You had a terrorist that
57 wanted to blow up U.S airliners within your grasp and you did not make a
58 decision? Off with your head!"
59 15.
60 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
61 The decision he made was, I can't pass up the opportunity to grab Rashid Rauf.
62 So he does.
63 16.
64 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
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1 We stopped a major attack against us. Since then of course we can't take more
2 than, what is it, 3.6 fluid ounces on airplanes. But that's a small price to
3 pay.
4 17.
5 NARRATION:
6 THE PLOTS KEEP COMING... WITH OSAMA BIN LADEN STILL AT LARGE.
7 18.
8 LEON PANETTA:
9 Where the hell was this guy that was our No 1 enemy? Every lead led nowhere for
10 almost 10 year. It was pretty frustrating. But then we had an indication from
11 Jordan - there was a doctor that if they were able to get him in to Pakistan he
12 might, he might be able to lead us to Zawahiri, who was the second in command.
13 19.
14 NARRATION:.
15 THE CIA BELIEVES IT HAS STRUCK GOLD. HUMAM AL-BALAWL A JORDANIAN DOCTOR, NOW
16 PROMISES TO LEAD THEM TO THE MOTHER-LODE.
17 20.
18 LEON PANETTA:
19 He had been a jihadist. The Jordanian Intelligence operation thought they had
20 been successful in flipping him. So there was a lot of excitement and .obviously,
21 you know officers who spent their whole life in Intelligence and working on
22 these kinds of issues, felt, uh you know, "Boy this might be a big break."
23 21
24 NARRATION:
25 CIA OFFICERS LIKE 30 YEAR-OLD ELIZABETH HANSON. AND STATION CHIEF JENNIFER
26 MATHEWS, A 20-YEAR AGENCY VETERAN.
27 22.
28 LEON PANETTA:
29
30 PORTRAIT
31 Leon Panetta
32 Director, 2009-11
33 Jennifer Mathews was in charge of the officers who were there. I wouldn't have
34 hesitated a moment to put her into that. position because of her capability and
35 her proven record.
36 23.
37 GINA BENNETT:
.38 LOWER THIRD
39 Gina Bennett .
40 Senior Counterterrorism Analyst '98- present
41
42 Jennifer I met in the late 1990's when I first came to the counter-terrorism
43 center. We were both working on understanding the support network to al Qaeda in
44 Afghanistan. And we were also pregnant at the same time, multiple times. She had
45 three children. Her three tracked with my - my third, fourth and fifth.
46 24
47 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
48 She was chasing bin Laden before chasing bin Laden was cool. And she had
49 actually based her professional career on tracking Al Qaeda and identifying its
50 adherents.
51 25.
52 NARRATION:
53 BUT TO GET TO OSAMA BIN LADEN, MATTHEWS AND HER CIA TEAM WANT A FACE-TO-FACE
54 MEETING WITH AL-BALAWI. IT'S A GAMBLE THAT MUST BE APPROVED BY DIRECTOR PANETTA.
55 26.
56 LEON PANETTA:
57
58 We at the CIA felt we had to establish our own credibility with this guy and to
59 do that you really had to sit down with him and do a meeting, to really gain
60 some insight as to who we're dealing with.
61 27.
62 LEON PANETTA:
63
64
The vehicle comes in to the base they brought him through some of the
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1 checkpoints. They make the decision that they are all going to go out .to greet
2 him. One of the mistakes that was made was there was no body search. There was
3 no check. They thought that it would show that, you know, that they were - that
4 they were friendly and that they were all anxious to be able to work with him.
5 28
6 NARRATION:
7 BUT AL-BALAWI IS NOT ABOUT TO TURN INTO A CIA SPY.
8 29.
9 CHYRON:
10 We will beat you CIA team. Inshallah we will beat. you down. Don't think that
11 you just pressing a button killing mujahideen you are safe. Inshallah death will
12 come to you.
13 NAT SOT: BALAWI SUICIDE VIDEO: We will beat you CIA team. Inshallah we will
14 beat you down. Don't think that you just pressing a button killing mujahideen
15 you are safe. Inshallah death will come to you. -
.16 30.
17 NARRATION:
18
19 THIS IS THE VIDEO HE MADE LAYING OUT HIS PLANS, HIS MARTYR SUICIDE VIDEO.
20 31.
21 CHYRON:
22 Look, this is for you. It's not watch. It's detonator to kill as much as I can
23 Inshallah. This is my job to kill you.
24 NAT SOT: BALAWI SUICIDE VIDEO: Look, this is for you. It's not watch. It's
25 detonator to kill as much as I can Inshallah. This is my job to kill you.
26 32;
27 NARRATION:
28
29 AL-BALAWI IS AN AL QAEDA AGENT_READY TO KILL, READY TO DIE.
30 33.
31 CHYRON:
32 And you will be sent to the hell_
33 NAT SOT: BALAWI SUICIDE VIDEO: and you will be sent to the hell...
34 34.
35 LEON PANETTA:
36
37 CHYRON:
38 Darren LaBonte, 35
39 Dane Paresi, 46
40 Jeremy Wise, 35
41 Harold Brown Jr., 37
42 Scott Michael Roberson, 39
43
44 His hands are hidden. They demanded that he take his hands out. They kept
45 yelling at him. And before they knew it he had detonated his suicide vest. It
46 blew up everyone who was in the area and the ball bearings from the vest
47 actually went under the vehicle and tore the legs of several other officers who
48 were there. So that almost everybody who was in that semicircle was wounded or
49 killed.
50 35.
51 JOHN BRENNAN:
52 It was a very, very grim reminder about just how much our officers put
53 themselves at risk.
54 36.
55 PORTER GOSS:
56 That was a terrible, terrible loss for the agency and really, really shook it.
57 37.
58 NARRATION:
59 SEVEN CIA OFFICERS ARE DEAD. INCLUDING ELIZABETH HANSON_ AND HER FRIEND JENNIFER
60 MATTHEWS.
61 38.
62 GINA BENNETT:
63 I have one memory of Jennifer that is the one I choose to recall. One time
64 Jennifer and I were traveling overseas. And we were in a tiny little beat up car
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1 she has the radio up, all crackly and horrible. But you hear the unmistakable
2 piano intro to Gloria Gaynor's 'I will Survive,' which any woman can tell you is
3 one of our anthems. And Jennifer cranks that radio all the way up, belting out,
4 "As long as I know how to love, I know I will survive" Just dancin'. That's how
5 I remember her, living larger than life. She just was all heart. As much as al
6 Qaeda thinks they destroyed her that day, they made her immortal. She will
7 always survive.
8 39.
9 LEON PANETTA:
10 It was very personal, personal for me, personal for the other officers at the
11 CIA.
12 40.
13 NARRATION:
14 IT ISN'T LONG BEFORE LEON PANETTA MAKES THAT LIFE-AND-DEATH DECISION� CALLING IN
15 A DEADLY DRONE STRIKE ON THE MASTERMIND OF THAT SUICIDE BOMBING_THE STRIKE THAT
16 ALSO KILLED HIS FAMILY.
17 41
18 LEON PANETTA:
19 Probably the biggest consequence was that the, gut feeling in every officers'
20 inner being that that their goal was to go after the leadership of al Qaeda.
21
22 ACT 6
23 "The Fog of War"
24 1.
25 GEORGE TENET:
26 We needed to get real-time information as fast as we possibly could to protect
27 the country and ensure there wasn't another attack on the homeland.
28 2
29 NARRATION:
30 THE CIA UNDER GEORGE TENET NOW EMBARKS ON A CONTROVERSIAL INTERROGATION PROGRAM
31 THAT WILL COME RACK TO HAUNT IT... ONE THAT BEGINS WITH A SINGLE PRISONER.
32 3
33 GEORGE TENET:
34
35 CHYRON
36 Faisalabad, Pakistan
37 March 2002
38 Abu Zubaydah was a major terrorist facilitator and planner on the part of Al
39 Qaeda. We believed that he had important and significant information to provide.
40 4.
41 JOSE RODRIGUEZ: .
42 And through an incredibly difficult targeting effort, we were able to finally
43 capture him in March of 2002.
44 5
45 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
46
47 PORTRAIT
48 Jose Rodriguez
49 Director, Counterterrorism Center 2002-04
50 There was a firefight and Abu Zubaydah is severely wounded.
51
52 6.
53 .JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
54 So we needed to take him somewhere where we could interrogate him ourselves,
55 away from the public light.'
56 7.
57 PORTER GOSS:
58
59 LOWER THIRD
60 Porter Goss
61 Director, George W. Bush Administration
62 We needed a place to talk to them. Where's that going to be? If you're going to
63 do it a jailhouse in Pakistan, you're going to get a hugely bad outcome because
64 A) nothing's going to be secret .and probably nobody is going to survive the
22
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1 session plus there will be a riot on the Main street in about 15 minutes.
2 8.
3 JOHN DEUTCH:
4
5 PORTRAIT
6 John Deutch
7 Director 1995-96
8
9
10 Should we bring 'em back to the United States? Give them the full protection of
11 the US Constitution? Allow them to have lawyers present to protect their rights
12 as if they were American citizens? I'd like to know what are you going to tell
13 the director of Central Intelligence to do?
14 9.�
15 NARRATION:
16 IN ORDER TO INTERROGATE THEIR PRISONERS, THE CIA CREATES A NETWORK OF SO-CALLED
17 BLACK SITES_
18 10.
19 NARRATION:
20 �SECRET PRISONS THAT EVENTUALLY WILL HOLD AT LEAST 119 SUSPECTED AL QAEDA
21 TERRORISTS_IN CHARGE OF THE SITES IS JOSE RODRIGUEZ.
22 11.
23 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
24 The black sites were instrumental in helping us gain very invaluable
25 information.
26 12.
27
28
29
30
31 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
32
33
34
35 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
36 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Some critics might say, "Well, wait a minute you wanted to be
37 able to abuse this guy. You didn't want any rules. You wanted to--"
38
39 Well, that's-
40
41 CHRIS WHIPPLE/ 11:45:45: "torture the guy."
42
43 That's bullshit.
44
45 13.
46 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
47
48 We get accused by human right activists that we created this black site in order
49 to abuse people. In fact, by accepting prisoners, we actually became responsible
50 for them, .for their health - for them totally.
51 14
52 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
53
54 CHYRON
55 Thailand
56 June 2002
57 Abu Zubaydah had provided some early useful information. And then he stopped
58 talking. George Tenet was going to the White House every day and the president
59 was asking George, "What is Abu Zubaydah saying about the second wave of attacks
60 and about all these other programs?" Well, he was not saying anything. And we
61 knew we had to do something different.. And over the summer months of 2002 put
62 together what became the enhanced interrogation program.
63 15.
64 NARRATION:
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1 TO RUN ITS PROGRAM, THE CIA HIRES TWO PSYCHOLOGISTS WHO HAD TRAINED U.S AIRMEN
2 TO RESIST ENEMY TORTURE; THEY HAVE NO EXPERIENCE IN INTERROGATION AND NO
3 KNOWLEDGE OF AL QAEDA. BUT THEIR COMPANY IS PAID A STAGGERING SUM OF $81
4 MILLION.
5 16
6 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
7 A lot of people talked about just have .tea with the guy and establish some sort
8 of rapport. I get it. I get that if you've got time we didn't have time - we
9 needed to accelerate the process.
10 17
11 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
12 What we were trying to do was to move individuals from a zone of defiance into a
13 zone of cooperation and then the intelligence gathering began.
14 18
15 NARRATION:
16 UNDER CIA SUPERVISION, DETAINEES WOULD BE SLAPPED AND GRABBED; DEPRIVED OF
17 SLEEP; FORCED ONTO LIQUID DIETS; EVEN CONFINED IN A COFFIN-LIKE BOX WITH LIVE
18 INSECTS.
19 19.
20 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
21
22 LOWER THIRD
23 Michael Hayden
24 Director, George W. Bush Administration
25 There was nudity. There was water dousing, cramped confinement, stress
26 positions
27 20.
28 NARRATION:
29 AND THEN THERE IS A TECHNIQUE MADE INFAMOUS BY HOLLYWOOD: WATERBOARDING.
30 21.
31 CHYRON
32 Zero Dark Thirty / Columbia Pictures
33 NAT SOT: ZERO DARK THRITY SCENE: Where was the last time you saw bin Laden.
.34 Where was the last time you saw bin Laden, huh? When you lie to me, I hurt you.
35 22
36 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
37 The opening scene of Zero Dark Thirty, where you see, all these prisoners being
38 abused by CIA officers, spontaneous waterboarding with a pail. Total bullshit.
39 Made up stuff.
40 23.
41 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
42
43
44
45
46
47
48 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
49 Water boarding as practiced by the Chinese, the Nazis, the Spanish Inquisition
50 is torture and has always been torture. But tile water boarding that was applied
51 was different. Okay.
52 CHRIS WHIPPLE: How is it different?
53 It's different because it doesn't use as much water. They don't drown anybody.
54 24
55 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
56 The body responds as if the, body thinks its drowning. Am I happy we had to do
57 it? Of course not.
58 25.
59 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
60 We had doctors there to make sure that no harm - came to the individual. I'm
61 not trying to minimize how unpleasant - this technique was. It is not torture.
62 You know, lawyers looked at this. Had they said, this is torture, we would not
63 do it.
64 26.
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1 GEORGE TENET:
2 The most important thing that happens here is these techniques and the proposal
3 to use these techniques on any human being are sent to the Department of Justice
4 immediately. Because we wanna know that it is legal under U.S. law and does not
5 in any way compromise our adherence to international torture statutes. And the
6 attorney general of the United States told us that it did not. It's also
7 important to know that the president of the United States authorized these
8 techniques.
9 27.
10 GEORGE TENET:
11 The president read the memo, looked at the techniques, and decided he was gonna
12 take two techniques off the table himself I do not know nor do I recall what
13 techniques were taken off the table.
14 28.
15 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
16 Only three detainees were ever waterboarded, by the way. Three killers that had
17 American blood on their hands were waterboarded by us. Give me a break. Give
18 me a break.
19 29.
20 NARRATION:
21 BUT THERE ARE SOME INSIDE THE CIA WHO HAVE GRAVE DOUBTS.
22 30.
23 JOHN BRENNAN:
24 There were a number of those techniques that - I 'personally - felt were
25 inappropriate, not necessary, beyond the pale.
26 31.
27 JOHN BRENNAN:
28
29 PORTRAIT
30 John Brennan
31 Current Director
32 Former Deputy to George Tenet
33 I was not in the -- in the chain of command, but I was a CIA officer, I was a
34 senior CIA officer at the time. And I had expressed my - my discomfort and my
35 my concerns about-- these techniques, believing that they were going to-- come
36 back to haunt us, the CIA. I did that with individuals, colleagues at the
37 agency
38 32.
39
40
41
42 GEORGE TENET:
43
44
45
46
47 GEORGE TENET:
48
49
50
51 GEORGE TENET:
52 -CHRIS WHIPPLE: Did he ever come and complain to you about the enhanced-
53 interrogation techniques?
54
55 Nope.
56
57 CHRIS WHIPPLE: He never came to you and said, "Hey, you know what, George? I
58 think this is wrong"?
59
60 Nope.
61
62 CHRIS WHIPPLE: He never did?
63
64 Nope.
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1 33.
2 JOHN BRENNAN:
3 It's not as though I went up and down the halls of CIA and said, "We shouldn't
4 be doin' this. We shouldn't be doing this.." Looking back on it now, should I
5 have spoken out more loudly About it? Maybe.. I think about that a lot.
6 34
7
8
9
10 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:.
11 CHRIS WHIPPLE: You say that this program was carefully managed.
12
13 Yes.
14 35.
15
16
17 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
18 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Did anybody dip?
19
20 At the beginning of 2002 when we started to take prisoners, we just did not know
21 what we were doing. We are not jailers. We don't have those skills. And abuses
22 were made. And we have fessed up to those.
23 36
24 GEORGE TENET:
25 Early on in the program, there were terrible mistakes made. There were
26 immediate Justice Department referrals made. And two people did die. And it's
27 regrettable.
28 37.
29 NARRATION:
30 ONE DETAINEE, SEVERELY INJURED DURING HIS CAPTURE, IS LEFT UNTREATED DURING A
31 CIA INTERROGATION AT AN IRAQI PRISON...AND DIES. ANOTHER IS SHACKLED HALF-NAKED ON
32 A COLD FLOOR AT A CIA BLACK SITE IN AFGHANISTAN. HE IS FOUND DEAD - OF
33 HYPOTHERMIA. NO CHARGES ARE EVER BROUGHT AGAINST THE OFFICERS INVOLVED.
34 38
35 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
36 It's awful that those things happen. But happen - shit happens, you know. I
37 mean, you know, we were at war. The fog of war.
38 39.
39 NARRATION:
40 SOME CIA OFFICERS WHO WITNESS THE INTERROGATIONS ARE SO DISTURBED THEY BREAK
41 DOWN IN TEARS.
42 40.
43 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
44
45 PORTRAIT
46 Gen. Michael Hayden
47 Director 2006-09
48 Emptied "black sites"
49
50
51 My personal view is, "Thank God." Alright? I would not want anyone in that room
52 doing this to another human being if they were not emotionally disturbed by what
53 it was they felt they had to do. Look, he's a terrorist, but he's also a person
54 and I would never want agency officers to forget both realities.
55 41.
56 NARRATION:
57 GEORGE TENET SAYS THAT ABU ZUBAYDAH, HIS RESISTANCE WEAKENED, GIVES UP .A
58 VALUABLE LEAD TO THE WHEREABOUTS OF AN AL QAEDA TERRORIST SECOND IN IMPORTANCE
59 ONLY TO OSAMA BIN LADEN HIMSELF.
60
61 42
62 GEORGE TENET:
63 Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the architect of 9/11, was captured as a result of an
64 elaborate human operation that was informed by data that interrogated detainees.
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1 gave us.
2 43.
3 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
4 We took him - to a black site where we would have the opportunity to debrief him
5 on what he knew about threats against - our homeland.
6 44.
7 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
8 He was smart, scary smart. Hannibal Lecter. Pure evil. The type of individual
-9 that is able to dream up different ways of killing us.
10 45.
11 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
12 We asked him, "what do you know about plots against the U.S.?" And his answer
13 was, "Soon you will know," which was a chilling response - because we also knew
14 that he was planning a second wave of attacks.
15 46.
16
17 NAT SOT: DANIEL PEARL VIDEO: My name is Daniel Pearl. I'm a Jewish American.
18 47.
19 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
20 He eventually confessed - to the killing of Daniel Pearl, the Wall Street
21 Journal reporter. And it was like a matter of fact. He said, "Look, I killed
22 him. I slaughtered him, cut him into pieces. I put him in a shallow grave." '
23 413.
24 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
25 He actually didn't have a,problem with waterboarding. He withstood
26 waterboarding.
27 49.
28 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
29 Khalid Sheikh Mohammed knew that in all likelihood we would stop at ten seconds.
30 And he would count with his fingers. He would go and then look at us like, "You
31 know, hey, it's time to stop."
32 so.
33 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
34 Had it not been for the accumulation of techniques and I think sleep deprivation
35 finally - led him to - become Compliant.
36 51
37 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
38 Afterwards, he wouldn't stop talking.
39 52.
40 NARRATION:
41 WATERBOARDED AND SLEEP- DEPRIVED, KHALID SHEIK MUHAMMED WOULD INADVERTENTLY HELP
42 POINT THE CIA TO ITS ULTIMATE TARGET: OSAMA BIN LADEN.
43 53.
44 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
45
46 PORTRAIT
47 John McLaughlin
48 Acting Director 2004
49 It was only when a number of detainees after interrogation revealed that indeed
50 Bin Laden had sent a message to his operations chief via this courier that
51 flagged this courier and caused him to rise to the top of the many candidates of
52 people we could follow.
53
54 54
55 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
56 We then raised Abu Ahmed Al Kuwaiti as a name to Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who at
57 that point had become largely cooperative. And then since we've got the place
58 wired, we hear KSM tell other detainees, don't talk about the courier. And our
59 folks in the bin Laden cell go after Abu Ahmed one grain of sand at a time,
60 identify him and follow him eventually to Abbottabad.
61 55.
62 NARRATION:
63
64
CHYRON
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1 May 1, 2011
2 THE MISSION THAT WOULD KILL OSAMA BIN LADEN- OPERATION NEPTUNE SPEAR - WOULD BE
3 A CIA COVERT OPERATION_THE CHAIN OF COMMAND GOING STRAIGHT FROM THE PRESIDENT TO
4 CIA DIRECTOR PANETTA TO THE NAVY SEALS_
5 56..
6
7 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: Tonight, I can report to the American people and to
8 the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama
9 bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda_..
10 57.
11
12 NAT SOT: USA - USA - USA!
13 58.
14 LEON PANETTA:
15 Hearing people outside the gates of the White House chanting, "USA. USA. CIA."
16 It was something that will be a memory that I'll have for the rest of my life.
17
18
19
20
21
22
23 ACT SEVEN
24, "Two damn ugly decisions"
25 1.
26 CHYRON
27 December 9, 2014
28 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: The CIA's enhanced interrogation techniques were not
29 an effective way to gather intelligence information. The CIA provided inaccurate'
30 information to the White House the Department of Justice, Congress. The CIA
31 program was far more brutal than people were led to believe.
32 2
33 GEORGE TENET:
34 The country deserved a thoughtful assessment of what happened in the immediate
35 years after 9/11.That's not what we got.
36 3.
37
38 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: They did things which I really consider immoral.
39
40 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: CIA interrogators used brutal techniques that went well
41 beyond the limits of the law.
42
43 NAT SOT: JOHN MCCAIN: Some of these practices amounted to torture.
44
45 NAT SOT: DICK CHENEY: We were very careful to stop short of torture.
46 4.
47
48 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: In the immediate aftermath of 9/11 we did some things
49 that were wrong. We did a whole lot of things that were right. But we tortured
50 some folks. We did some things that were contrary to our values.
51 5.
52 NARRATION:
53 AFTER A FIVE-YEAR INVESTIGATION OF MORE THAN SIX MILLION PAGES OF CIA DOCUMENTS,
54 THE DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY OF THE SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE ISSUES A
55 SCATHING INDICTMENT. IT SAYS THE AGENCY MISLED CONGRESS ABOUT THE BRUTALITY OF
56 ITS INTERROGATION PROGRAM - AND THAT NO EVIDENCE WAS PRODUCED THAT DISRUPTED
57 PLOTS OR SAVED LIVES.
58 6.
59 NARRATION:
60 THE EFFECTIVENESS, AND MORALITY, OF THE PROGRAM WOULD TRIGGER AN IMPASSIONED
61 DEBATE AMONG THE DIRECTORS_
62 7.
63 GEORGE TENET:
64 People are throwing the word "torture" around, you know, as if - as if we're
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1 we're torturers.
2 8.
3 GEORGE TENET:
4 I'm not gonna ever accept the use of the word "torture" in front of - what�what
5 happened here. I'm not going to fall to that.
6 9.
7 WILLIAM WEBSTER:
8
9 LOWER THIRD
10 William Webster
11 Director, Reagan and
12 George H.W. Bush Administrations
13 If you think somebody knows something that would help you save American lives
14 how far should or could you go to get that .information? Of course the terrible
15 word torture comes to mind.
16 10.
17 JOHN BRENNAN:
18 The term torture is a very, very loaded word.
19 11.
20 JOHN DEUTCH:
21
22 LOWER THIRD
23 John Deutch
24 Director, Clinton Administration
25 If you don't believe that there is a distinction between enhanced interrogation
26 and torture, the conversation is over.
27 12.
28 ROBERT GATES:
29
30 LOWER THIRD
31 Robert Gates
32 Director, George H. W. Bush Administration
33 You can slice and dice the semantics a number of different ways. I think it's
34 hard to not describe some of the techniques that were used as torture.
35 13.
36 MICHAEL MORELL:
37
38 LOWER THIRD
39 Michael Morell
40 Acting Director, Obama Administration
41 If I were captured by an adversary and somebody slapped me in the face would I
42 come back and say I was tortured? No. If somebody waterboarded me would I come
43 back and say I was tortured? Yes.
44 14.
45 STANSFIELD TURNER: .
46
47 LOWER THIRD
48 Stansfield Turner
49 Carter Administration
50 I think it was torture, I really do.
51 is.
52
53 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: History will judge us by our commitment to a just
54 society governed by law and the willingness to face an ugly truth and say,
55 "never again."
56 16.
57 PORTER GOSS:
58 I think it is a hopelessly incorrect conclusion based on flawed information.
59 17.
60
61 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: Our review was a meticulous and detailed examination
62 of records.
63 18.
64 PORTER GOSS:
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1
2 PORTRAIT
3 Porter Goss
4 Director 2004-06
5 None of the principals involved in this were interviewed, which is rather
6 important because the alleged motive of this study was to find out how this came
7 to pass, what happened and make sure it never happens again.
8 19.
9 MICHAEL MORELL:
10 Enhanced interrogation techniques without any doubt in my mind produced unique
11 intelligence that stopped plots, saved lives, took additional senior al Qaeda
12 officers off the battlefield.
13 20.
14
15 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: We took 20 examples that the CIA itself claimed to
16 show the success of these interrogations and not a single case holds up.
17 21.
18 GEORGE TENET:
19 They are virtually wrong in all 20 of the cases.
20 22.
21 MICHAEL MORELL:
22 One of the 20 cases is a senior al Qaeda operative telling us that al Qaeda had
23 moved to a particular city in Pakistan. That's what he told us before enhanced
24 interrogation techniques. After enhanced interrogation techniques he actually
25 sits down with satellite photography and points out the actual buildings where
26 senior al Qaeda operatives are which allows us to go and deal with them.
27 23.
28 GEORGE TENET:
29 The value in my estimation as I sat at my 5:00 meeting every night and as we
30 were using this information to break up plots, capture leaders, stop further
31 attacks against the United States was enormously high.
32 24.
33 GEORGE TENET:
34 Without this program Heathrow Airport woulda been bombed. Other facilities in
35 Great Britain woulda been bombed. Buildings in New York would've exploded.
36 Suspension bridges woulda been taken down.
37 25
38 NARRATION:
39 AND TENET INSISTS THAT INTELLIGENCE FROM THE 'ENHANCED INTERROGATIONS' LEADS TO
40 THE CAPTURE OF A TERRORIST PLANNING A SPECTACULAR ATTACK.
41 26.
42 GEORGE TENET:
43
44
45
46
47
48
49 GEORGE TENET:
50 He had already recruited 17 Southeast, Asians to engage in an airline plot
51 against the West Coast of the United States. The value is--
52
53 CHRIS WHIPPLE: The report says you had that information from other sources.
54
55 The report is dead wrong on every account, period, end of paragraph.
56 27
57 GEORGE TENET:
58 The bin Laden operation would not have been possible without the courier in
59 question being highlighted as prominently as he was by detainees.
60 28.
61 NARRATION:
62 DIRECTOR JOHN BRENNAN, WHO WAS TROUBLED BY THE BRUTAL TECHNIQUES, SAYS THE JURY
63 IS OUT.
64 29.
30
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1 JOHN BRENNAN:
2 What I'm saying is that there's no way to know whether or not Khalid Sheikh
3 Mohammed would have provided that information if he had not been waterboarded.
4 That is unknowable because that scenario never happened.
5 30
6 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
7 Director Brennan is a good friend of mine and I have the utmost respect for him.
8 But I would just respectfully disagree with that - I mean that strikes me as - a
9 dodge wrapped in political correctness.
10 31
11 NARRATION:
12 ANSWERS TO SOME OF THESE QUESTIONS MIGHT HAVE BEEN FOUND BY WATCHING VIDEOTAPE -
13 THE WATERBOARDING OF TWO PRISONERS WAS ACTUALLY RECORDED. BUT THE VIDEOTAPES
14 WERE DESTROYED.
15 32
16 PORTER GOSS:
17 While I was still the director in a morning briefing at the end of the briefing
18 somebody said "oh by the way the tapes were destroyed." And I rose out of my
19 chair and said, "What?"
20 33.
21 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
22
23 LOWER THIRD
24 Jose Rodriguez
25 Director, National Clandestine Services
26 My primary motivation in destroying the tapes was to protect the people who work
27 for me. They showed people naked, being waterboarded and going through the
28 enhanced interrogation techniques.
29 34.
30 PORTER GOSS:
31 Jose knows how I feel about it. He left me in a horrible, horrible spot. My
32 concern was it would cause a firestorm on the Hill politically because everybody
33 would assume there was something to hide, rather than something to show.
34 35.
35 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
36,
37 I knew that the tapes would play as if -- you know-- we were-- all psychopaths
38 and that's something that we didn't want.
39 36
40
41
42
43
44
45 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
46
47 CHRIS WHIPPLE: So you had the director of National Intelligence, the director of
48 the CIA, a member of Congress all saying, "we don't want these tapes destroyed,"
49 and you did it.
50
51 Now I was not stupid, I didn't one day decide to get out of bed and destroy
52 tapes. I got approval to do this. I consulted with our lawyers.
53 37.
54
55 NAT SOT: DIANNE FEINSTEIN: The videotapes were destroyed shortly after CIA
56 attorneys raised concerns that Congress might find out about the tapes.
57 38
58 NARRATION:
59 A NECESSARY EVIL� OR A BETRAYAL OF AMERICAN VALUES?
60 39.
61 LEON PANETTA:
62 Somebody has to stand up and be willing to say, this is not what our country is
63 about. Yes, we're facing a terrible enemy, one who doesn't care about who gets
64 killed, but the United States is better than that.
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40.
2 WILLIAM WEBSTER:
3
4 PORTRAIT
5 William Webster
6 Director 1987-91
7 Federal Judge
8 FBI Director
9 Our Constitution does prohibit "cruel and unusual" treatment. If it's cruel, we
10 shouldn't be doing it. We've got to have people who are prepared to say, "Mr.
11 President you can't do that. It's illegal."
12 41.
13 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
14 Let's have a CIA director being interviewed here after the second wave and, and
15 you get to ask him the question_ 'Now, look the Department of Justice said it
16 was legal but yet you refuse to do it. How do you feel about your decision now?'
17 And so let's not pretend that this is the forces of light and forces of
18 darkness. These are two damn ugly decisions.
19 42.
20 DAVID PETRAEUS:
21 As the commander of the multinational force in Iraq we actually had 27,000
22 detainees at the high watermark of our operations.
23 43.
24 DAVID PETRAEUS:
25 My view quite simply is that if you want information from a detainee you become
26 his best friend. You have to have very skilled interrogators, very skilled
27 analysts and so forth. It's a long process.
28 44.
29 GEORGE TENET:
30 These are the hardened, worst terrorists responsible for the deaths of thousands
31 of Americans in a period where we simply didn't believe we had time to become
32 their best friends.
33 45.
34 PORTRAIT
35 Admiral Stansfield Turner
36 Director 1977-81
37 STANSFIELD TURNER: I just don't think a country like ours should be culpable of
38 conducting torture. I just think it's beneath our dignity. I think it's poor for
39 our reputation in the world.
40 46.
41 MICHAEL MORELL:
42 Should a country, the United States of America, which stands for human rights in
43 the world, which stands for human dignity, probably more than any country-do
44 those techniques to another human being? Right? That's - that's- a really
45 reasonable question.
46 47
47 DAVID PETRAEUS:
48
49 PORTRAIT
50 General David Petraeus
51 Director 2011-12
52 DAVID PETRAEUS: One is, it's wrong. But if you don't accept that, don't do it
53 because it typically will bite you in the backside later on. You will pay a
54 price for what you do and it will be vastly greater than whatever it is you got
55 out of taking this particular action.
56
57 48
58 GEORGE TENET:
59 You can judge us. We made those decisions for good and valid reasons and all I
60 would be able to say is-- we sat where we sat. We decided what we did. We
61 understood the implications.
62 49.
63
64
NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: I can stand here today as President of the United
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1 States and say without exception or equivocation that we do not torture.
2 so.
3 MICHAEL MORELL:
4
5 PORTRAIT
6 Michael Morell
7 Acting Director 2012
8 Given President Obama's criticism of enhanced interrogation techniques, I think
9 one of the interesting questions is: What would he have done had he been put in
10 President Bush's shoes um, when George Tenet came to him and said, "You need to
11 do this or Americans are going to die." Um and obviously I don't know what the
12 President would've done and possibly he doesn't know what he would've done.
13
14 51
15 LEON PANETTA:
16 How do we make sure we are not so caught up in the fear of an enemy that we
17 begin to move away from the principles and the standards that represent what
18 this country's all about. And you know that's not an easy�there's not, there's
19 not an easy answer to that. I mean some people think that there is, but it's
20 not.
21 52.
22 JAMES WOOLSEY:
23
24 LOWER THIRD
25 James Woolsey
26 Director, Clinton Administration
27 The classic case of course is a nuclear weapon in downtown Manhattan, hidden and
28 you have in your hands the individual who knows where it is. Would you
29 waterboard him? Let me turn it around. Would you?
30 53
31 LEON PANETTA:
32 The reality is-- you have to look at it in context. I mean, if-- if in fact,
33 you had-- credible intelligence that there was a nuclear weapon planted
34 someplace in New York City or Washington DC and there was one person that would
35 know where that bomb was located-- it'd be very tough-- not to resort to every
36 method possible in order to get that information. I just have to be frank with
37 you.
38 54.
39 JOHN BRENNAN:
40 If a president tomorrow asked me to waterboard a terrorist I would say-- "Mr.
41 President, sorry, I do not believe that that is what is in our best interest as
42 a country, as an institution of CIA. And we need to find other ways to get that
43 intelligence."
44 55.
45 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
46 If some future president is going to decide to waterboard, he better bring his
47 own bucket because he's going to have to do it himself. The agency is not going
48 to do this again.
49
50
51
52 ACT EIGHT
53 "Have you ever killed someone?"
54 1.
55 ROBERT GATES:
56
57 PORTRAIT
58 Robert Gates
59 Director 1991-93
60
61
62
63
64
Just as we were talking about this Senate Intelligence Committee report on
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1 interrogation techniques and torture, if you will, the question people need to
2 ask themselves, is 10 years from now, will people be asking them the same
3 questions about the use of these drones?
4 2.
5 NARRATION:
6 THEY ARE LETHAL, MAN-MADE BIRDS OF PREY;
7 3.
8 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
9
10 LOWER THIRD
11 Michael Hayden
12 Director, George W. Bush Administration
13 When you can stare at a target unblinkingly for hours, if not days, and then use
14 a weapon against that target that has a 14-pound warhead in it and with an
15 accuracy,measured in inches this actually makes warfare more precise and that
16 should be a good. .
17 4
18
19 NAT SOT: DRONE OPERATOR: Roger. You are now free to engage the vehicle.
20 5
21 ROBERT GATES:
22 They give you the ability, actually, to minimize civilian casualties Or
23 collateral damage.
24 6.
25
26 NAT SOT: DRONE OPERATOR: Unintelligible order. Give me 10 seconds. Roger. Direct
27 hits. Right there.
28 7.
29 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
30 Now the dark side. The dark side is the ease with which a political decision
31 maker can make the decision to do this.
32 8.
33 GEORGE TENET:
34 People need to be careful about being so happy with the use of the term "kill."
35 Intelligence officers in particular have to worry about the use of that term..
36 9:
37
38 NAT SOTS: Families crying out after a strike: Bashar, now they will arrive_and
39 American plane!
40 10.
41 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
42
43 LOWER THIRD
44 John McLaughlin
45 Acting Director, George W. Bush Administration
46 There are many times when people are talking loosely about it or enthusing to me
47 about it, and I will say to them, "Have you ever killed someone?"
48 11
49 NARRATION:
50 IT WAS ON GEORGE TENET'S WATCH IN 2001 THAT DRONES, ONCE JUST EYES IN THE SKY,
51 BECAME KILLING MACHINES.
52. 12.
53 GEORGE TENET:
54 I had a question, and it is a question that still- needs to be asked today as
55 well, "Do you want the civilian head of an intelligence organization firing a
56 weapon outside of the chain of military command?"
57 13
58 GEORGE TENET:
59 I needed to ask the question. They needed to answer the question. We never got
60 the answer to the question. And off we went.
61 14
62 NARRATION:
63 WHY AREN'T ALL DRONES OPERATED BY THE MILITARY? ONE REASON: WHEN A COVERT CIA
64 OPERATION GOES BADLY, IT CAN BE DENIED_
34
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1 15.
2 DAVID PETRAEUS:
3 I obviously can't comment on whether the CIA conducts operations that would be
4 under the realm of covert action.
5 16
6 DAVID PETRAEUS:
7 Covert action is of course that you don't acknowledge them what you do, is you
8 just don't talk about them.
9 17.
10 NARRATION:
11 IN FACT, THE CIA'S DRONE WARFARE PROGRAM IS SO SECRET_THE AGENCY DOES NOT EVEN
12 ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT EXISTS. YET SOME DIRECTORS ARE SURPRISINGLY CANDID.
13 18.
14 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
15 It's a covert action. It's an activity designed so that the hand of the United
16 States is hidden.
17 19.
18 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
19 It allows you to do it in circumstances, in which it would be more difficult for
20 the military to do.
21 20.
22 NARRATION:
23 CIA DRONE STRIKES WERE ONCE RARELY CONDUCTED OUTSIDE OF WAR ZONES. THE TROUBLE -
24 WAS, THAT WAS EXACTLY WHERE AL QAEDA WAS REGROUPING.
25 21
26 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
27 In the first half of 2008, CIA made the case that we had to begin to go do some
28 things, targeted killings for example, outside of internationally-agreed
29 theaters of conflict. Get this guy off the battlefield 'cause "he's going to
30 come kill you and your children" was absolutely compelling. By mid-summer 2008,
31 our government decided on a new course of action.
32 22
33 NARRATION:
34 PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH GIVES THE GREEN LIGHT.
35 23.
36 NARRATION:
37 BUT HAVE DRONES GIVEN PRESIDENTS - AND DIRECTORS - UNCHECKED POWER? THE POWER TO
38 DECIDE WHO LIVES AND WHO DIES?
39 24.
40
41 NAT SOT: DRONE PROTEST: Shouting and chanting.
42
43 IMRAN KAHN: Drone attacks violate every human law because no law allows anyone
44 to become judge, jury and executioner.
45
46 MAN: Americans are ruthless people. They are against Islam. They are the
47 tyrants.
48 25. .
49 JOHN DEUTCH:
50
51
52 LOWER THIRD
53 John Deutch
54 Director, Clinton Administration
55 You know, it's curious that certain kinds of activity are called; -
56 "assassination." Others are not.
57 26.
58 NARRATION:
59 IN 1976, PRESIDENT GERALD FORD SIGNS AN ORDER PROHIBITING THE CIA FROM ENGAGING
60 IN ASSASSINATION.
61 27.
62 JOHN DEUTCH:
63
64
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1
2
3
4 JOHN DEUTCH:
5 � For example, the use of drones going after particular targets is not, termed an
6 "assassination" in the sense of this executive order.
7
8 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Why not? Why shouldn't it be?
9
10 Uh, I don't know. It's a question you could answer as well as I do.
11 28.
12 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
13 There is a distinction between a political assassination and against a targeted
14 killing of an enemy combatant after Congress has declared war against Al Qaeda
15 and the authorization for the use of military force is a declaration�It's as
16 close to a declaration of war as we will ever get in this country again and we
17 are going after enemy combatants consistent with the laws of armed conflict.
18 29.
19 NARRATION:
20 PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA TAKES OFFICE, AFTER A CAMPAIGN CRITICAL OF GEORGE BUSH'S
21 WAR ON TERROR. BUT UNDER THE NEW COMMANDER IN CHIEF, DRONE STRIKES RISE
22 DRAMATICALLY.
23 30.
24 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
25 National security looks different from the Oval than it does from a hotel room
26 in Iowa.
27 31.
28 LEON PANETTA:
29 �
30 LOWER THIRD
31 Leon Panetta
32 Director, Obama Administration
33 To be able to go in, to conduct surveillance, to target those individuals and
34 then to conduct very precise attacks on those individuals was the most effective
35 weapon we had.
36 32.
37
38 NAT SOT: DRONE OPERATOR: Unintelligible commands. Clear to engage all.
39 33
40 JOSE RODRIGUEZ:
41
42 LOWER THIRD
43 Jose Rodriguez
44 Director, Counterterrorism Center 200204
45. This administration-- prefers-- killing-- terrorists rather than holding them
46 captive. And the reason I think is because-- it's hard. ,It's hard to capture.
47 It's-- it's hard work. And many would consider it dirty business.
48 34.
49 JAMES WOOLSEY:
50
51 PORTRAIT
52 James Woolsey
53 Director 1993-95
54
55
56
57
58 JAMES WOOLSEY:
59 They're killing a lot of people with, let's say, drone strikes that would better
60 be captured and interrogated, that we -- might have a chance of learning what
61 the terrorist group is going to do next. You can't question somebody you've
62 killed.
63
64
36
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1
2
3 I don't know that that's the CIA's position. I think that's the President's
4 position. I, I think he is killing more people than he needs to and we'd be
5 better off capturing some of them and interrogating them.
6 35.
7 JOHN BRENNAN:
8
9 LOWER THIRD
10 John Brennan
11 Director, Obama Administration
12 We will do everything possible to see if we can prevent them from being
13 successful, capturing them. And when that's not possible, well, then I think
14 the president should have the ability to take action
15 36.
16
17 NAT SOT: PROTESTORS: End the Afghan war. Stop the drone attacks. End the Afghan
18 war. Stop the drone attacks.
19 37.
20 NARRATION:
21 YET SOME WATCHDOG ORGANIZATIONS CLAIM THAT AMERICAN DRONES HAVE KILLED MORE THAN
22 A THOUSAND CIVILIANS - NUMBERS THE U.S. GOVERNMENT SAYS ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED.
23 38
24
25 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: U.S strikes have resulted in civilian casualties
26 those deaths will haunt us as long as we live.
27 39.
28 NARRATION:
29
30 CHYRON
31 Yemen
32 THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL TARGET IN THE HISTORY OF DRONE WARFARE IS ABOUT TO ENTER
33 THE CIA'S CROSSHAIRS.
34 40.
35
36 NAT SOT: AWLAKI VIDEO: To the American people I say, your security will continue
37 to be threatened as long as your government continues with its aggression
38 against the Muslim people.
39 41
40 NARRATION:
41 HE IS ANWAR AL-AWLAKI_A SWORN ENEMY OF THE UNITED STATES AND AN AMERICAN
42 CITIZEN.
43 42.
44 LEON PANETTA:
45 He was born in the U.S. and was someone who was using social media in order to
46 convey a message about jihad and. doing it very effectively and was someone who
47 had gone to Yemen there was no question in my mind that he was extremely
48 dangerous and somebody that we had to go after.
49 43
50
51 NAT SOT: AWLAKI VIDEO: As you send us your bombs, we will send you ours.
52 44
53 NARRATION:
54 THE CHARISMATIC CLERIC CONSPIRES WITH THE SO-CALLED UNDERWEAR BOMBER - IN A
55 FAILED PLOT TO BLOW UP AN AIRLINER OVER DETROIT ON CHRISTMAS DAY 2009...AND HE
56 INSPIRES THE JIHADIST MILITANT WHO KILLS 13 AND INJURES MORE THAN 30 IN A
57 SHOOTING SPREE AT FORT HOOD, TEXAS.
58 45.
59 WILLIAM WEBSTER:
60
61
62 LOWER THIRD
63 William Webster
64 Director, Reagan and
CHRIS WHIPPLE: So in other words, the CIA is just, "we're taking no prisoners?"
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1 George H.W. Bush Administrations
2 I was asking, "what were we interested in al-Awlaki about?" Well, someone said,
3 "Well he's, he's a bad guy. He's on the President's list." So I -- "what list is
4 that?" "Well, the good-bye list"
5 46.
6 NARRATION.:
7
8 THE 'GOOD-BYE LIST'_ALSO KNOWN AS THE 'KILL LIST' - IT'S THE GRIM ROSTER OF
9 TERRORISTS TARGETED FOR EXECUTION BY THE U.S GOVERNMENT.
10 47.
11
12 NAT SOT: AWLAKI VIDEO: I, for one, Was born in the U.S. and lived in the U.S.
13 for 21 years.
14 48.
15 LEON PANETTA:
16 We went through the process to uh make a case for why uh al-Awlaki was
17 dangerous, and uh the Justice department along with the our general counsel and
18 counsel out of the White House felt that a good case had been made. to put him on
19 that list.
20 49. .
21 NARRATION:
22
23 THE 'KILL LIST' IS AN OPEN SECRET_ SO OPEN THAT AL-AWLAKI'S FATHER GOES TO A
24 U.S. COURT IN A DESPERATE EFFORT TO HAVE HIS SON'S LIFE SPARED.
25 50.
26 CHYRON
27 Nasser al-Awlaki
28 NAT SOT: NASSER AL-AWLAKI: I want decent American lawyer to tell me that it is
29 right for the United States. government to kill an American citizen on the basis
30 that he said something against the United States or against American soldiers. I
31 mean I don't understand.
32 51.
33 NARRATION:
34
35 THE PETITION IS REJECTED.
36 52.
37 NARRATION:
38
39 SEPTEMBER 30, 2011. DAVID PETRAEUS IS NOW IN CHARGE WHEN CIA DRONE PILOTS IN
40 NEVADA DRAW A BEND ON AL-AWLAKI IN YEMEN. THEY HAVE BEEN WATCHING HIM FOR DAYS.
41 53
42 CHYRON
43 Archive
44 NAT SOT: COMMAND: Get back on those guys. There you go.
45 54.
46 DAVID PETRAEUS:
47 I think you always do soul searching when you're putting individuals in harm's
48 way you turn these over in your mind and uh and there are occasions where you
49 say, "Let me mull this one. Let me think on it." But if you ensure that you're
50 within the rules of engagement, um then you press forward and make a decision.
51 55.
52 NARRATION:
53
54 MOMENTS LATER ANWAR AL-AWLAKI IS DEAD.
55 56
56
57 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: Awlaki was the leader of external operations for. al
58 Qaeda.
59 57.
60 NARRATION:
61
62 NOT SINCE THE CIVIL WAR HAS THE U.S. GOVERNMENT EXECUTED ONE OF ITS CITIZENS -
63 WITHOUT AN INDICTMENT, TRIAL OR SENTENCING.
64 58.
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1
2 ROBERT GATES: The precedent of an American president being able to kill an
3 American citizen under any circumstances, on just his signature, is dangerous.
4 59.
5 LEON PANETTA:
6 There were Nazis who were U.S. citizens. Uh does that make them less of an
7 enemy? till, there are terrorists who are U.S. citizens. Does that somehow make
8 them less of an enemy? I don't think so. In my book, a terrorist is a terrorist.
9 60.
10 ROBERT GATES:
11 I would prefer, under those circumstances, that there was some kind of external
12 body where the president mould present the evidence to somebody outside of the
13 executive branch to say, "I think this is conclusive. Do you think this is
14 conclusive?
15 61.
16 JOHN BRENNAN:
17 .1 don't see that the president ever alone made a decision on something like this
18 there are a lot of people involved in that discussion, debate, and decision
19 making.
20 62.
21 ROBERT GATES:
22 There's a process and there's certainly a discussion. But at the end of the
23 day, it's all presidents' appointees. And then it's the president's signature.
24 There is no outside review. There is no external evaluation of the evidence.
25 63.
26 WILLIAM WEBSTER:
27 This was an American citizen and he was ultimately taken out, but it's not
28 something that should be left to one person, no matter who that person is.
29 64.
30 NARRATION:
31 ANWAR AL-AWLAKI WAS JUST ONE MAN. BUT THE CIA'S DRONES HAVE KILLED
32 SCORES_PERHAPS HUNDREDS WHOSE NAMES ARE UNKNOWN.
33 65
34
35 NAT SOT: Unintelligible Commands.
36 66
37 ROBERT GATES:
38 My worry is that there are too many, of what we would call signature strikes,
39 which are at a group pf suspected terrorists where the evidence may not be that
40 clear, of specifically, what is going on.
41 67.
42
43
44
DAVID PETRAEUS:
45 CHRIS WHIPPLE: What about the so-called signature strikes?
46
47 I can't talk about signature strikes. If they are even taken, I don't know what
48 they are.
49 68.
50 MICHAEL MORELL:
51
52
53
54
55 MICHAEL MORELL:
56 I'm not talking about those guys. I don't believe these directors are talking
57 about this stuff.
58 CHRIS WHIPPLE: Well, you know_
59 I'm not talking about them.
60 69.
61 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
62 You have every reason to believe that there are bad guys there at the moment.
63 You don't quite know the name of the bad guy but you know the van, you know the
64 weaponry, you know the size of the group, you know what kind of meetings have
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been held there before, you know the other vehicle that pulled up and you make a
2 decision.
3 70.
4 NARRATION:
5 JANUARY, 2015. CIA DRONES STRIKE A TERRORIST ENCAMPMENT IN PAKISTAN. TO THE
6 AGENCY'S SURPRISE, KILLED, ALONG WITH THE TERRORISTS, ARE TWO HOSTAGES,
7 INCLUDING A 73-YEAR-OLD AMERICAN AID WORKER.
8 71.
9
10 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: On the behalf of the United States government I offer
11 our deepest apologies to the families.
12 72.
13 MICHEL HAYDEN:
14 These were signature strikes. The names of the targets were not known.
15 73.
16
17 NAT SOT: PRESIDENT OBAMA: _mistakes, sometimes deadly mistakes can occur.
18 /4.
19 PORTER GOSS:
20
21 LOWER THIRD
22 Porter Goss
23 Director, George W. Bush Administration
24 In some cases where people ended up dead, I don't know whether they were
25 collaborators or innocent bystanders. And that's the problem with these kinds of
26 remote button warfare games. I would rather up close and personal.
27 75
28 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
29 This hard. Alright? And anybody who makes these kinds of decisions are going to
30 lose some sleep, but you'd also lose sleep if you failed to make these decisions
31 and bad things happen to Americans.
32
33 ACT NINE
34 "Time and Space"
35 1.
36 LEON PANETTA:
37 When people ask you, "What keeps you awake at night? What I worried about a
38 great deal - was the potential for a crippling cyber-attack on this country, a
39 cyber-Pearl Harbor attack, which could paralyze our nation.
40 2
41 DAVID PETRAEUS:�
42 Well there are a number of different possibilities that could you keep you up�it
43 could be everything from a loose' nuke somewhere to the employment of some kind
44 of novel WMD element in a densely populated area of the United States uh, to a
45 very sophisticated lone wolf attack.
46 3;
47 PORTER GOSS:
48 The homegrown terrorist bit is a huge threat. Even though not in terms of--
49 fatalities-- in a massive event; but in terms of psychological warfare, getting
50 us to do things to restrict our freedoms. I mean, if you s-- shut, down every
51 mall in the country-- you shut down the trains, the planes, the banks, or
52 whatever it may be, you've done-- you've done something.'
53
54 4.
55 NARRATION:
56 ONGOING THREATS...UNRELENTING
57 PRESSURE...THE BURDEN OF PREVENTING THE NEXT TERRORIST ATTACK TAKES A PERSONAL
58 TOLL.
59 5.
60 LEON PANETTA:
61 I don't think you can go through that kind of experience, of uh having to make
62 life and death decisions. Having to, every day, every day read Intelligence
63 about all of the evil that's out there in the world and those that want to.
64 strike at us. I don't think you can go through those kinds of days and uh not
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1 have it affect you. I think it does.
2 6
3 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
4 It's hard to have a positive view of human nature. There's an awful lot of dark
5 forces afoot in the world.
6 7
7 PORTER GOSS:
8 It is your responsibility to look up at every plane and watch every train and
9 you think, "What could go wrong? What could go wrong?" I need to be thinking
10 about what can go wrong.
11 8.
12 GINA BENNETT
13 I don't have a husband anymore. I think over the years, I had just become Such
14 a robot in my approach to life because that was what was needed on the job. I
15 got all the trains off on time and all that sort of thing with the family. But
16 they don't necessarily see me as having been emotionally present in their lives.
17 That's a hard thing to take.
18 9.
19 GEORGE HW BUSH:
20 The reason I'm so strong for CIA is I saw their dedicated men and women that
21 work there get no credit. Not out in the open at all. And I just admired their
22 patriotism and their dedication to this country.
23 10.
24 JOHN DEUTCH:
25 It was very, very hard. You know, I always noticed something- that the wives of
26 CIA directors, the wives are, to a person, of the view that the experience was
27 not good for their husbands.
28 11
29 NARRATION:
30 THE SPYMASTERS ARE ALL TOO HUMAN_THEIR SUCCESSES OFTEN SECRET - THEIR MISTAKES
31 EXPOSED AND MAGNIFIED.
32 12.
33
34 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: The scandal comes at a sensitive time for Petraeus and
35 the CIA. One week...
36
37 NEWS REPORTER: David Petraeus is not the first, high ranking Washington official
38 to have an affair but he is the first CIA director to resign because of one.
39 The Petraeus indiscretions came to the attention of the FBI_
40 13
41
42
43
44 DAVID PETRAEUS:
45 CHRIS WHIPPLE: You were confirmed in the job by a vote of 92 to nothing.
46 Precipitous fall. How tough was that?
47
48 Precipitous falls are very tough. You know there's a saying in the military, the
49 higher you go up the flagpole the more chance you have to show your backside and
50 uh I was well up the flagpole and did just that.
51 14.
52 NARRATION:
53 SOME DIRECTORS WORRY THAT THE AGENCY'S MISSION HAS CHANGED_THAT THE CIA, ONCE AN
54 INTELLIGENCE AND ESPIONAGE SERVICE, HAS BECOME TOO FOCUSED ON LETHAL COVERT
55 ACTION...
56 15.
57 MICHAEL MORELL:
58 There's no doubt that CIA today has a much larger paramilitary mission than it
59 ever has, going all the way back to its roots, there's no doubt that over the
60 long-term that's not a healthy thing, because the primary job of the Central
61 Intelligence Agency is to collect secrets.
62 16.
63 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
64 Look, I'll be totally candid with you. An awful lot of what we now call analysis
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1 in the American Intelligence community is really targeting. We're safer because
2 of it, but it has not been cost-free.
3 17
4 ROBERT GATES:
5 I think there's too much of a tendency to get so caught up in the scintillating
6 covert world, that we forget that it's on the analytical side and the espionage
7 side that CIA actually - earns its money I mean, just think about the past
8 decade or more had we not gone to war in Iraq, what the world would look like.
9 so - and that's an analytical failure.
10 18.
11 MICHAEL MORELL:
12 It doesn't mean you don't kill. It doesn't mean you don't protect yourself,
13 there's just a bigger issue that you have to get your arms around, which is the
14 creation of terrorists in the first place.
15 19.
16 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
17 Look, let's be very candid. This is about Islam. Now I'm not criticizing one of
18 the world's great monotheisms. It's not about the Quran. It's not about the
19 prophet. But it is about the way it is being misused.
20 20
21 LEON PANETTA:
22 My view of this frankly-is that, this is not so much religion as just evil and
23 we've always had to deal with evil. I mean people, people who do evil things
24 they may excuse what they do, based on Jihad based on the power of the church.
25 But deep down, these are people who are evil.
26 21.
27
28 NAT SOT: NEWS REPORTER: Civil uprisings quickly became a tsunami of citizens
29 roaring for freedom.
30 22.
31 GEORGE TENET:
32 There's been a transformation of sorts in the Middle East. Because the Arab
33 Spring, while it has regressed in some ways - they unleashed a series of forces
34 that basically said, "We want a better way of life. We want a functioning civil
35 society." So, in part, the message has to be to Islam itself is you have to
36 create vibrant civil societies that work, that create educational opportunities.
37 But this is something they have to do for themselves.
38 23
39 MICHAEL MORELL:
40 Dealing with this radicalization that's taking place among these young men and
41 young women, is the bigger problem and until we get our arms around that, this
42 war is not going away.
43 24.
44 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
45 The harsh truth is, terrorism is, right now, worse than it's ever been. It's
46 the largest safe haven they've had in more than a decade with money, access,
47 narrative, and territory. I've come to the view in dealing with bad guys that
48 generally, you should believe what they say. Most of them are gonna try and do
49 what they tell ya they're gonna do. For now, I would say. the ISIS objective is
50 to consolidate their position in this so-called caliphate. But unless they are
51 stamped out, they'll come here. They'll come here.
52 25.
53
54 NAT SOT: JOHN BRENNAN: Our sensibilities and our souls have been jarred once
55 again by the horrific and wanton violence perpetrated upon the innocent in the
56 streets, cafes and concert halls of the beautiful city of Paris.
57 26.
58 JOHN MCLAUGHLIN:
59 To say we're not in their gun sights, reminds me a little bit too much of pre-
60 9/11, where frankly the CIA encountered, and much of the world, what I would
61 call a climate of disbelief.
62 27.
63 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
64 I wish we would just capture some people. I've got more fingers on this hand
42
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1 than the number of people we've captured since I left government. We've made it
2 so legally difficult and politically dangerous to capture that we don't.
3 28.
4 PORTER GOSS:
5 We do not know what the rules of engagement are. Are we dealing with enemy
6 combatants? Are we dealing with criminals? Are we dealing with thugs? Are the
7 rules of engagement is we shoot-first? We only shoot if we get shot at?
8 29
9 JOHN BRENNAN:
10 I do not believe that the - the remedy to terrorism is using the pointy end of
11 the spear-- kicking down the doors, taking action against the terrorist
12 organizations.
13 30.
14 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
15 This is not an issue we can kill our way out of.
16 31.
17 MICHAEL MORELL:
18 You cannot kill your way out of this.
19 32.
20 JOHN DEUTCH:
21 You cannot kill your way out.
22 33.
23 GEORGE TENET:
24 You can't kill your way out of this. That's a mistake. It's a much bigger issue
25 than just killing people. It's much more complicated.
26 34.
27 WILLIAM WEBSTER:-
28 Now we can live in a world where we all try to see who could be the toughest,
29 the meanest and so forth but it isn't going to be the kind of world that we
30 believe we want for our children and for their children.
31 35.
32 GINA BENNETT:
33 I may be a bit of a heretic because I don't really see terrorists or terrorism
34 as a threat to U.S. national security. To me, our nation's security is only
35 threatened by us. If we choose to change course and become something that we're
36 not.
37 36.
38 MICHAEL MORELL:
39 So if you look back at the fight against al Qaeda and ISIS, the big picture is a
40 great victory for us and a great victory for them. Our great victory has been
41 the degradation, decimation, near-defeat of that al Qaeda core that brought that
42 tragedy to our shores on 9/11. Their great victory has been the spread of their
43 ideology across a huge geographic area. That's been their great victory.
44
45 37.
46 JOHN BRENNAN:
47 I fear and I realize that we're not going to see an end to terrorism in my
48 lifetime or my children's lifetime we're just going to have to continue to do
49 our jobs every day to minimize to the greatest extent possible the ability of
50 these individuals to successfully carry out these - these terrorist acts.
51 38.
52 JOHN BRENNAN:
53 That's what intelligence is really trying to do. We're trying to give time and
54 space to policy makers, to our diplomats, to our negotiators to resolve some of
55 these outstanding issues and tensions that exist in the world.
56 39
57 MICHAEL HAYDEN:
58 The reality is, that intelligence or direct action only buys you space. It
59 rarely solves the problem on its own and if political leaders don't have the
60 wherewithal or the courage or whatever it takes to use the space, you get into
61 this loop, where you get to kill people forever.
62
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