September 3, 2004 - On September 17, 2001, just six days after the Twin Towers fell the Federal Bureau of Investigation scooped up Karim Koubriti and Abdel-Ilah Elmardoudi in a Detroit suburb. Attorney General John Ashcroft’s Justice Department announced that the raid broke up what it called a terrorist sleeper cell. The pair had videos, photographs, drawings and other documents that the Justice Department claimed were surveillance of sites for future terrorist attacks in Las Vegas on a NATO base in Turkey. When the pair was convicted of terrorism charges Attorney General Ashcroft took himself out to the Blue Drapes to announce the outstand victory in the nation’s War on Terrorism. It was the first of many similar raids and triumphs that followed in enclaves of Moslem immigrants and converts across the country.

Except it was nothing of the kind. When after trial some of the concealed materials emerged Judge Rosen, who had been appointed to the Federal Bench by President George H. W. Bush, ordered the Justice Department to conduct a review of the case. When the review produced evidence that convinced the Justice Department lawyer who took over the case not just that his predecessor had concealed evidence but that the defendants were innocent of terrorism charges. He took the unusual step of asking the court to void the convictions, dismiss those charges and grant a new trial a fraud count that was unrelated to terrorism. In throwing out the convictions and dismissing the terrorism charges against the Moroccan immigrants Judge Rosen said that the prosecutors “ignored or avoided any evidence or information which contradicted or undermined” their preconceived view of the case.

They ignored or avoided any evidence or information which contradicted or undermined their case. Where have we heard that before? The Whitehouse, the Pentagon and the Foggy Bottom Boys from State were so anxious to make a case for war against Saddam Hussein that they negated any evidence or information that contradicted or weakened their pre-conceived conclusions. They sent Colin Powell to make the case to the Security Counsel based upon evidence we now know was either exaggerated or actually falsified.

Still, there is no backing down from attempting to justify the war in Iraq. As late as last night’s acceptance speech the President is attempting to convince us that the mistaken war in Iraq is part and parcel of a national effort against terrorism. The fact is that it is not and the President cannot bring himself to admit it. The military aspect of the war on terrorism was and is being fought in the forgotten and all but abandoned campaign in Afghanistan.

It has been a case of trying to sell ignorance and avoidance as leadership. That is why when Dubya is visited by the Truth Fairy and he lets it slip that we are not winning his War on Terror he has to rush to revise and explain his words.