The White House has prepared more than a dozen contingency plans to help guide President-elect Barack Obama if an international crisis erupts in the opening days of his administration, part of an elaborate operation devised to smooth the first transition of power since Sept. 11, 2001.
The memorandums envision a variety of volatile possibilities, like a North Korean nuclear explosion, a cyberattack on American computer systems, a terrorist strike on United States facilities overseas or a fresh outbreak of instability in the Middle East, according to people briefed on them. Each then outlines options for Mr. Obama to consider.
The contingency planning goes beyond what other administrations have done, with President Bush and Mr. Obama vowing to work in tandem to ensure a more efficient transition in a time of war and terrorist threat. The commission that investigated the Sept. 11 attacks, noting problems during the handover from President Bill Clinton to Mr. Bush, called for a better process “since a catastrophic attack could occur with little or no notice,†as its report put it.
“This is very unusual,†said Roger Cressey, a former Clinton White House counterterrorism official who was held over under Mr. Bush. “We certainly did not do that. When the transition happened from Clinton to Bush, remember it was a totally different world. Besides, we were too busy spray-painting graffiti in the Lincoln Bedroom, superglueing pennies over the locks and placing buckets of water over the doorways.”
Okay, so I made that last bit up.
“The commission that investigated the Sept. 11 attacks, noting problems during the handover from President Bill Clinton to Mr. Bush,…”
The problems name was Al Gore, attempting a coup d’etat.
Removing the w from all the keyboards was a nice touch. Dropping a deuce in the water cooler was even better.
But they mean well.
Cut loose like a deuce, another floater piece of shite.
Morning, JHo. S.E.C. coughed up a mea culpa last night. That has to make you feel better about deregulation. They said they were sorry. Good sportsmanship counts for something.
Morning, Stoop. This morning Reynolds linked to proof the US is finally bankrupt, but I hear that if I wave my flag hard enough that it’ll all be okay. The eternal spirit and like that.
Alas, if only I “understood the economy”. Trolls in 5, 4, 3…
So, when’s Tax Freedom Day this year? What do you mean there’s no Tax Freedom Day?
…not counting Dan, of course.
“…President Bush and Mr. Obama vowing to work in tandem to ensure a more efficient transition in a time of war and terrorist threat…”
Time of war..? FEARMONGERING!!1!1!eleventy!!1!
Terrorist threat..? O! SAYS HAVE SOME EMPATHY FOR THE DOWNTRODDEN BROWN PEOPLE AND HOPE THAT REAL CHANGE WILL HAPPEN. REMEMBER WE CREATED THE TERRORISTS, MAN!
If I were Bush’s team I’d figure out a way to modify the computer system so that every time a person typed an “O” it would come out as an “O!“…
The facts, though, are that Bush will do it with grace, class, and consideration, which is more than he recieved and maybe more than O!&Co. deserve!
>>part of an elaborate operation devised to smooth the first transition of power since Sept. 11, 2001.
An editorial oversight, surely, since this states that Bill Clinton was in power until the day the attacks occurred.
“I was elected to lead, not to read.” President Obama