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The smoke, flames, dust and horror of September 11, 2001 still hang in the American air five years later.
The 2004 book-length report of the special commission rather reluctantly appointed by President Bush to delve into the why and the how of those terrorist attacks was widely hailed for its literary style, thoroughness and nonpartisan approach. It still sells well in bookstores. Now the two men who chaired that commission have told the story of the investigation itself.
Thomas H. Kean, former Republican governor of New Jersey, and Lee H. Hamilton, a former Democratic congressman from Indiana, were not the original choices for their seemingly thankless task. Henry Kissinger and George Mitchell, President Bush's initial choices, had both resigned. Kean and Hamilton, their successors, tried hard to keep the inquiry free from the partisan pressures of the 2004 Presidential campaign. They strove for unanimity and tried to concentrate on simply setting forth the facts, with no attempt to spin them one way or another.
It was a rough road. The commission was denounced by some, dismissed as a sham effort that was "set up to fail," and disputed on some key factual points. Their very public labors were watched critically by a horde of people with huge egos and vested interests, among them the families of the 9/11 victims, the many federal, state and local government agencies involved, the two jousting political parties and the usual gaggle of crackpot conspiracy theorists unwilling to let mere facts get in their way.
Part of the problem was the wide scope of the commission's mandate. It was not just a matter of determining what happened and who was responsible on September 11th. Also on the table were the history of the al Qaeda terrorist movement, ramifications for foreign policy, ways to improve emergency response, details of terrorist financing and a host of other issues. Originally budgeted at a paltry $3 million by a Congress that seemed to want it to fail, the commission managed to get that figure raised to $14 million and its mandated life extended by two months.
Despite their efforts to be as non-judgmental as possible, Kean and Hamilton leave the impression that the administration constantly raised obstacles, restricting their access to documents, placing restrictions on testimony by high officials and disputing the probers' interpretations of evidence. Two government agencies come in for harsh criticism for lack of cooperation --- the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). The well-organized and highly vocal group of 9/11 victims families is a kind of constant offstage Greek chorus, sharply critical one day, grateful and supportive the next.
Several of the commission's 41 recommendations have become commonplaces since 9/11 --- the need for better emergency communications among responders when a great catastrophe strikes and the need for set policies to designate who is in charge on such occasions. A follow-up "report card" issued when the commission's report was complete gave generally mediocre grades on implementing its 41 recommendations. Kean and Hamilton confess to great anxiety that some of their most important ideas have still not been acted upon five years out.
The book gains added interest by its humanizing of the 10 commission members, its candid acknowledgment of their biases and its admission that there were indeed passionate disagreements among them, despite their willingness to end up with a unanimous report and no dissenting minority briefs. There are moments of high drama and a supporting cast of unsung heroes, people who did brave deeds but never became celebrities.
One important question is left unanswered: Did Kean and Hamilton employ a ghost writer? Benjamin Rhodes, a Hamilton aide, is credited on the title page and --- ambiguously --- in the acknowledgments. How much of this text is his?
There oughta be a disclosure law on this. Let's appoint a commission to draft one.
--- Reviewed by Robert Finn (Robertfinn@aol.com)
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