Daschle Joins Those Urging Independent 9/11 Inquiry

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) on Tuesday joined those calling for an independent commission to investigate government intelligence failures preceding Sept. 11, but it seems increasingly unlikely that such a panel will get off the ground.

The idea is resolutely opposed by President Bush and House Republican leaders, who have the power to keep the proposal from coming to a vote and who view it as a political ploy by ambitious Democrats. “We must not allow the president to be undermined by those who want his job,” said House Majority Whip Tom DeLay (R-Texas).

And even some Democrats oppose setting up an independent commission, arguing that the sensitive probe should be left to the House and Senate Intelligence committees. For months, these panels have been conducting a joint inquiry into why government officials were not better prepared for terrorist attacks and what can be learned from the lapses.

“Let them do their job,” said Sen. Joseph R. Biden (D-Del.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), a member of the Senate Intelligence panel, said she feared an independent commission, complete with public hearings and debate, would “add a lot of heat, not necessarily light right now.”

Disagreeing was Daschle, Bush’s leading Democratic adversary in Congress and a possible presidential contender in 2004. He joined a growing phalanx of politicians and outside analysts in arguing that only an independent commission can conduct an investigation broad and nonpartisan enough to ensure improvements by intelligence agencies.

Daschle’s endorsement was especially important because, as majority leader, he has the power to bring such a measure before the Senate.

A Daschle aide said the proposal may be introduced as an amendment to an emergency spending bill this week.

The debate’s differing voices provide a classic example of how in Washington power struggles, views often are shaped by institutional forces as well as partisan ones. Where you stand often depends on where you sit, according to an old capital truism. Thus, the Democrats most likely to oppose the idea of creating a new commission are the ones--like Feinstein--who sit on the Intelligence committees and have a stake in the ongoing probe.

Whether Congress sets up an independent commission, one thing is clear: Lawmakers are not going to keep quiet and abide by Bush’s call for an end to congressional second-guessing.

“One of the primary functions of a Congress is to second-guess,” said Sen. Ernest F. Hollings (D-S.C.).

The joint inquiry by the House and Senate Intelligence panels of whether the government may have ignored terrorist threats before Sept. 11 began in February.

The work has been beset by problems, including the resignation of the former CIA official who had been hired to lead the probe. Also, lawmakers leading the investigation have complained that the Justice Department and CIA have been uncooperative.

On Tuesday, however, lawmakers emerged from a meeting with Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft expressing more confidence that the administration would cooperate with their inquiry.

House Intelligence Chairman Porter J. Goss (R-Fla.) said he hoped a public hearing would be held in about a month and that a report would be produced in the fall.

The clamor for an independent review grew on Capitol Hill last week after the revelation that Bush was told in early August that associates of Osama bin Laden might be planning to hijack aircraft.

Administration officials said the warnings were vague and seem only in hindsight to have merited special attention.

Those pushing for an independent commission include Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.), and House Democratic leader Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.).

Proponents say an independent panel would be free from the election-year partisanship that threatens to undermine any congressional investigation.

They also argue that such a panel would be able to explore a broader range of questions about such areas as immigration policy, transportation security and other issues not addressed by the House-Senate investigation, which is focused exclusively on intelligence matters.

But critics say an independent commission would duplicate or impede the efforts of the inquiry, as well as threaten the secrecy of sensitive intelligence matters.

Republican lawmakers also argued that setting up a new panel would be time-consuming, thwarting the public’s need for a timely examination of troubling security questions.

“The public wants the answers tomorrow,” said Sen. John Warner (R-Va.).

*

Times staff writers Nick Anderson and Richard Simon contributed to this report.