Washington — U.S. President George W. Bush, faced with terrorist threats and election-year pressures, embraced the notion yesterday of a national intelligence czar, accepting one of the key recommendations of the commission that investigated the intelligence failures surrounding the 2001 terrorist attacks.
"Our country is safer than it was on Sept. 11, 2001, yet we're still not safe," he said in remarks from the White House Rose Garden, flanked by members of his cabinet. "We are a nation in danger."
Mr. Bush made his announcement as security measures were increased at major financial institutions in Washington, New York and Newark, N.J., after the discovery of details of a possible al-Qaeda plot to launch car-bomb or truck-bomb strikes.
Police, clad in body armour and wielding rifles, guarded sites in New York, where almost 3,000 people were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks that brought down the World Trade Center. In Washington, some streets were shut to traffic and police set up a temporary security perimeter around the Capitol to inspect suspicious cars and trucks. Police in the capital have been put on a six-day, 12-hour shift schedule.
A member of the New York City Police Department special Hercules Unit stands guard outside the New York Stock Exchange on Monday as employees arrive at work the morning after a threat from al-Qaeda. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)
Mr. Bush's hasty endorsement of one of the main recommendations from the bipartisan commission was announced as he and Senator John Kerry, his Democratic rival for the presidency, scrambled to portray themselves as the best choice to keep the country safe and secure.
An opinion poll released yesterday found Mr. Kerry had the support of 49 per cent of voters, compared with 47 per cent for Mr. Bush, a statistical tie, according to the ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted after last week's Democratic National Convention. (Candidates usually see a boost in their standing after their party's convention because of media coverage of the event.)
The poll of 1,200 adults also found that Mr. Kerry is viewed by 52 per cent of respondents as better able to serve as commander-in-chief, while 44 per cent support the Republican President.
Mr. Bush also backed the recommendation that a national counterterrorism centre be established. But he stopped short of accepting that the overall security co-ordinator should be part of the White House, as the commission recommended.
His administration has already been accused of manipulating intelligence findings in the run-up to the Iraq war; putting a national security director in the White House could make it a more political post.
"I don't think that the office should be in the White House. I think it ought to be a stand-alone group to better co-ordinate, particularly between foreign intelligence and domestic intelligence matters," Mr. Bush said.
Mr. Kerry immediately accused Mr. Bush of dragging his feet on security issues, while the President said his challenger's criticisms were wrongheaded.
The issue of which man would better protect Americans is emerging as a central battleground in the November election.
Mr. Bush lashed back after accusations from Mr. Kerry that the President's decision to wage war in Iraq had fomented anti-American terrorism.
"The policies of this administration, I believe and others believe very deeply, have resulted in an increase of animosity and anger focused on the United States of America," Mr. Kerry said on a campaign swing in Michigan yesterday. "The people who are training terror are using our actions as a means of recruitment."
Mr. Bush quickly shot back, saying: "That's a fundamental misunderstanding of the war on terror. It is a ridiculous notion to assert that because the United States is on the offence, more people want to hurt us. We're on the offence because people do want to hurt us."
Mr. Kerry's accusation that Mr. Bush is still not responding quickly enough echoes assertions he made immediately after the Sept. 11 commission issued its final report 10 days ago. Mr. Kerry said then that if he were president he would enact all of the panel's 41 recommendations.
"When we are at war, we need to do things that make us safe, rapidly, immediately," Mr. Kerry said yesterday. "If there is something that will make America safer, it should be done now, not tomorrow. I regret that it's taken us almost three years to get to the point where these recommendations are now being adopted."
The White House maintained that Mr. Bush's decision to proceed with many of the panel's recommendations had nothing to do with the election or Mr. Kerry's criticisms.
"This has nothing to do with politics," chief of staff Andrew Card said. "This has to do with better protecting the homeland and making sure that the resources of our intelligence community are well co-ordinated so that the President can have the best information available to defeat terrorism."
Mr. Kerry said that if Mr. Bush were serious about appointing a new director of intelligence, which would require changes to U.S. law, he would call Congress back from its summer recess.
Mr. Bush said he had no plans to summon lawmakers back for a special session to address the proposed changes, adding, "They can think about them over August and come back and act on them in September."
