[techweenie]

It wasn't GWB who 'untied' them, either.

Mainly because their hands were not tied at all. If they had been hobbled, those agencies would have appealed to GWB's administration for rules changes. They didn't, because those supposed 'rules' were just basic legal procedure and didn't interfere in the way the Right has complained. Find a credible source within the FBI and CIA who can explain how their hands were tied.

Both agencies needed excuses -- badly.

The CIA had *one* person who spoke OBL's language (Uzbek?) and few Mideast experts. They were using the same people who misidentified asprin factories in the past.

The FBI couldn't find people listed in the San Diego phone book. That's neither Cllinton's nor Reno's nor Bush's fault.