Obama Administration Scrubs Terrorist Databases, Adds Names to More Restricted Lists

A reactive government, instead of proactive. Yes we can.

hey, based on what jake is reporting here, doesn’t it seem like we are now profiling, e.g., “based on age and nationality criteria”…? i’m curious, tierra, what do you think about this? you seem to be a prolific post responder here and obviously lean way left. just wondering how you would–or would not–defend the obama administration actions regarding this new development.

the ‘right’ complains when they perceive inaction
the ‘right’ complains when they perceive action
sort of like recent comments from Cheney, lies, fabrications, innuendo so easily proved to be wrong,.. republicans like Cheney have completed their transformation into conservative jihadists..
show them a video of their own comments and they deny they made the statement…truth and accuracy no longer matter, shame and guilt have replaced any modicum of patriotism.

Do you agree with President Obama’s actions about these lists? Do you have any concerns at all?
Posted by: malcat
I do, seems like all the intel coordination plans and new agencies that were put into operation after 9/11 still don’t work, Obama is ordering a review, to figure out why this bomber got as far as he did without detection.. seems like a logical process to begin to address the failure of the agencies involved.
what I hear that is distressing are the made up issues of how Obama is not concerned about
safe guarding America, or that he is not sayng the word ‘terrorism’ or that ‘we are at war’..
these issues are all patently false and yet they seem to be the main thrust of the republican right.
at a certain point, some must acknowledge that the behavior now exhibited by republicans like Cheney was characterized as being a traitor, by none other than Cheney himself.
if republicans have solutions, offer them, if not,
don’t continually beg for attacks on america to justify political nonsense.

Thank you, Oh Yeah. See I like to hear other peoples’ views, even those that disagree with me.
I don’t think President Obama is doing enough with these lists.
First: Why multiple lists? I am a data analyst. I work with databases everyday that are larger than the two lists named above put together. Why double the effort and time to search 2 lists when one can be created? Any relational database can be created to quickly identify only those records meeting specified criteria. There should never have been multiple lists, and President Obama should take the reins and correct the problem now.
Second: I do not have a problem with profiling, if done correctly. Limiting the search for new suspects based on what happened Christmas Day is, I believe, an error. Consider Hasan at Fort Hood; he doesn’t match the profile of the 12/25 cretin.
Third: A little off topic, but related. The US is much too open about our plans, policies, and procedures. In this article, we just announced to the world what type of person we are looking for. Terrorists are evil, but they aren’t stupid…not the leaders anyway. The US has made public our criteria about airport screening. Profiling is effective only when the enemy can’t tell what we are profiling. And totally randomized application of increased screening is absolutely mandatory.
President Obama has a wonderful opportunity to correct so many flaws in terrorist detection and intelligence gathering. The American people want it and they will stand behind him. He needs to move fast…as fast as he has moved on other issues.
As much as I want true, sustainable health insurance reform…the security of our borders, of our citizens here and abroad, all are vital. Or we won’t have a country, with or without health insurance, health care, sound financial system, none of that.

My prayers to our Intelligence folks, and all who have sworn to protect and preserve our nation. May your actions be guided by wisdom and the highest good.
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I will wholeheartedly agree with you, Carol.
May they all come home safe, sound, well, and soon!

There is a past that leads here, and the current administration does not operate in a vacuum nor should it be judged in a vacuum. One of the ways to judge this administration is against the accomplishments, failures, actions of the previous. This is an obvious and sensible way to assess an administration.
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You are quite correct; all administrations inherit the good, the bad, the possibilities and the roadblocks from previous administrations.
But there must come a time when any administration must accept responsibility for its actions whether the action is to correct something from the past or to begin new policies.
Take this issue here. Definitely there are flaws in intelligence and terrorist-detection processes.
But the current administration needs to embrace the opportunity of bettering them. Just as every administration that has gone before, this administration must (for the safety and well-being of the USA) move forward WITHOUT looking back. And, its supporters and detractors need to recognize that the past cannot be changed…it’s gone.
I disagree that an administration should be judged by what previous administrations have done. Running the greatest nation of the world is NOT a contest. An administration should be judged on how it deals with both what it ‘inherited’ and the new challenges and opportunities that present themselves.
This country is doomed if the precedent of blaming everything on the previos administration continues into the future. The next administration will just say “Sorry, we inherited things”. The next administration may be worse than our current one. That spells disaster! I don’t want that to happen. I love the USA and I want (need) her to be strong and vital.
I’m a Republican…registered anyway..lean towards them more than not. But I will never blindly excuse Republican politicians when they screw up anymore than I will excuse Democrats. Ny husband is a Democrat and feels the same in reverse. I happen to think this would be a better country if more felt like us.

Tierra, I hate to sign off before hearing from you, but it’s after 1a and I have to work tomorrow.
Good night!

The problem with defining yourself against a former president is never escaping his shadow. Sure, defense attacks, only fair play. But Obama in office has gone further than that. It is getting to the point that much of what he and his administration say and do can only be understood with reference to GWB. If you’d been asleep for the last decade you wouldn’t be able to label much of it Democrat or Republican, just odd.
There is political logic behind it, no doubt. But I wonder if the reasoning is sound. Anger over GWB’s policies was the one thing that kept the left and the mainstream elements of the party together. The left could pretend to be powerful and the middle could pretend to be cool, just like the campaign in that respect. But a full year has past and much of the goodwill Obama played so well has now dissipated, a good part of it by playing to a wing of the party that won’t be nearly as influential the next time around. I
t’s a surreal moment, seems to me the only way he can get out of this jam is to cut the left loose and govern from the real middle. Real as in 2009, when it wasn’t left c conservative any more but far left v. center in his own party.

So Obama and company are making list of who’s naughty and nice, while terrorists are training. Chritmas is over SantaBama and you were a bad Santa to the people who pay the bills. How about sending a few predators to Yemen or perhaps some shooters and kill the 300 terrorists Yemen knows about? Add THAT to your list, President Stupidly.

Gone are the days when you could catch a plane like you could a bus. This has to add gazillions to the cost of doing business and undoubtedly to the federal budget and the bad part is that as we spend more trying to be 100 percent safe ,the bad guys will think of more ways to scare us causing us to spend even more.
Wasn’t one of OBL’s goals to bankrupt us?

How about sending a few predators to Yemen or perhaps some shooters and kill the 300 terrorists Yemen knows about?
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You mean to shoot the ones Cheney released who were apparently behind counselling the Christmas Detroit flight bomber?

Hannity and the right want to waterboard the Nigerian terrorist to try and get information about Yemeni terrorists out of him. Hello! Sean! We don’t torture anymore. This is exactly why people are leaving the GOP/conservative fold.

When President Obama’s staunch supporters appear unable to offer proof that he is better instead of just criticizing the previous POTUS, I don’t gain much confidence in the current POTUS.
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This isn’t true unless you limit what you read or listen to. Even here, the problem with this argument is that people shoot down all successes that don’t fit their ideology, and refuse to be flexible when addressing the topic. At least this is true of those on the far right and far left. It appears that “proof” is in the eye of the beholder– and after awhile there appears to be little point in going there. I’m sure Bush’s staunch supporters could tell you the same thing. I wouldn’t make any blanket statements in regards to what supporters think unless you’ve truly dialogued with many. I’ve still got the President’s back and list his accomplishments on my own blog, and on various comment threads around the blogoshpere, including here, for example. Its easier to complain about government (and your boss, and the media, and just about anything) than grapple with the realities another deals with in making change or setting policy.

tierra–
I’d still like to hear if you are for profiling. based on jake’s post, we are now doing at least some forms of profiling…i think it is needed and myself have been an object of profiling (in israel i fit the profile of someone who might inadvertently bring a bomb onto a plane, apparently). i know then that it is bothersome to fit such a profile, but israel’s air transport system is much safer than our own, ironically and it is due to measures such as profiling.
so again, i was just wondering if you could give your own opinion on this. you seem to be an obama apologist and a highly honed bush-basher, but let’s see a positive affirmation of what YOU believe.

P.S. Terrorists are cool. Republicans are bad.
Posted by: progressive mama | Jan 5, 2010 9:55:11 AM
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I didn’t write this and consider it rude to use my screen name to post really dumb comments. Whoever you are, I hope karma is swift and harsh. And since I’m signing off to go to work, I hope people read comments with the full understanding that someone is resorting to some very low– and insanely immature– tactics.
Thanks.

I am not American, but a friend and ally. To observant, objective outsiders, insular America appears to have little understanding or interest in the world beyond your borders.
I’m not a Bush supporter, but just 8 months after he was elected, he was saddled with 9/11. He kept your people safe for 7 years, and was booed out of Washington. How’s that for thanks.
Now you have a socialist president who is clearly naieve, who has to be mildly influenced by the several formative years living in Islamic Indonesia, who seems over-sensitive to the rights of detained suspected wrongdoers, who would tax your people out of existence, and now we see 2 shocking terrorist attacks on American soil in less than 2 years (both attacks with documented prior warning signs).
Al quaeda have infiltrated your CIA.
And now Clinton (to her husband you can attribute the policies of irresponsible lending to irresponsible borrowers, aka Sub Prime debacle) is ponfificating that American taxpayer money can fund stablilisation money to Yemen. You can’t bargain with failed nations.
The people you have in government now seem to be wildly less astute than the previous outfit.
Why do you have such stoopid politicians?
Some of the stuff they advocate is nothing short of cringeworthy. Then there’s the under-qualified Speaker, a woman with limited education and far too much influence. A woman who graduated from Trinity with a base-grade qualification, jetting off to Copenhagen, regularly commenting on economic issues that should be the domain of more appropriately qualified minds.
Then there’s Sarah Palin, absolutely unbelievable, and surely an embarrassment to your country.
Wake up American friends. Your country is being taken for a ride. A generous, articulate nation of good and decent people, but with no lateral thinking leadership, political dynasties who think their names entitle power, and far too much time-wasting, taxpayer-funded political hot air.
It’s time all western countries shut our doors to non-allied nationals. The era of melting pot harmony is well and truly over, for all of us. Finished. All of us might do better to protect and maintain our own backyards, before they are fully occupied by our enemies.