Well, we now have some more information about the arrests in Miami.
Mr. Gonzales acknowledged that the men, who had neither weapons nor explosives, posed “no immediate threat.” But he added, “they did take sufficient steps that we believe does support this prosecution.”
In general, Mr. Gonzales said, homegrown terrorists “may prove to be as dangerous as groups like Al Qaeda.”
News of the arrests touched off widespread television coverage of the plot against the Sears Tower, one of the tallest buildings in the world. But details of the indictment disclosed Friday at news conferences in Washington and Miami presented a less alarming picture. The indictment made clear that a pivotal role was played by an unidentified undercover F.B.I. informer who posed as a Qaeda member and met repeatedly with the reported ringleader of the group, Narseal Batiste.
More on Narseal Batiste:
But an uncle said he could not believe Batiste is capable of masterminding the murder of innocents.
“He’s a follower more than a leader,” said John J. Ford, 67, of Chicago. “He wasn’t no ringleader about nothing.”
And how serious was the threat?
Cline and other officials stressed there was no evidence the alleged plotters took any action in Chicago. They said they had no information that the men arrested had visited the Sears Tower to study it or make plans.
The plot “was never an actionable plan and, therefore, no one was in danger,” said Andrew Velasquez, head of the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communication.
People who have offices in the Sears Tower don’t seem too concerned, either.
From all the reports, it seems like this group of seven “terrorists” were not even capable of executing a major terrorist plot that involves the Sears Tower. After all, they even had to ask the undercover agent for boots [see last question] and a video camera.
These guys deserved to be busted up for the actions they took. It’s just like making a joke about a gun in the airport security line: the TSA takes the statement seriously, and gives your bags a thorough search.
But nothing that I’ve seen justifies the type of national and international press sought by the Department of Justice. This was not the kind of threat that should involve the Attorney General in a press conference. Arrest these guys, and give them a good scare. But there’s no need to make a national stink about it.
Or is there?
Vice President Dick Cheney, speaking at a political luncheon in Chicago, denounced the decision to reveal the existence of the financial monitoring program and the earlier-disclosed National Security Agency surveillance program.
?What I find most disturbing about these stories is that some of the news media take it upon themselves to disclose vital national security programs, thereby making it more difficult for us to prevent future attacks against the American people,? Cheney said. ?That offends me.?
The Mark