Ashcroft's Turn To Feel The Heat

FBI Director Thomas Pickard has told the 9/11 Commision that he appealed to US Attorney General John Ashcroft for more money for counterterrorism. On Sept 10, 2001, one day before the attacks, Ashcroft rejected the appeal.

Ashcroft was briefed on terrorist threats by Pickard in late June and July 2001.

'After two such briefings, the attorney general told him he did not want to hear this information anymore,' the report quoted Pickard as saying. Ashcroft denies making any such statement to Pickard, so once again somebody must be lying...

And former FBI Director Louis Freeh testified that he sought permission to hire almost 1,900 counterterror linguists, analysts and agents in the previous three years but was allowed to add just 76.