http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060920/...m_intelligence


WASHINGTON - The House Intelligence Committee chairman said Wednesday that the United States must attack Islamic extremism with more than military might by focusing on social and economic work in countries cooperating in counterterrorism efforts.


"We need to recognize that this war cannot be won solely by being on offense in a military sense," said Rep. Peter Hoekstra (news, bio, voting record), R-Mich. "We need a comprehensive strategy, as well, to engage them on a number of different fronts."

A spokesman for Hoekstra said he was not distancing himself from the Bush administration, but was laying out additional steps that should be taken against al-Qaida and other extremist groups. The White House contended that it has long said a comprehensive strategy is needed.

Speaking at the conservative American Enterprise Ins ute, a think tank, Hoekstra cited his trip this year to Algeria, a relatively new U.S. partner in the counterterrorism fight. He said leaders there told him that they wanted to work with the United States on economic, medical, energy and other development issues beyond military and intelligence.

The comments accompanied release of a committee report examining how al-Qaida has changed since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and the continuing threat posed by its affiliates and by homegrown terrorists.

"Unfortunately, there are still gaps in our understanding of Islamist extremist groups, which leaves America vulnerable to future attacks," the 28-page do ent concludes.

Democrats on the intelligence committee did not support the report, either voting against it or abstaining. They have expressed concern that Republicans are using it to fan voter fear for political gain and say the threat assessment adds no new information to the nation's understanding of challenges facing the government.

"It is clear that al-Qaida and Islamic extremists pose a serious threat to U.S. national security. The American people do not need the House Intelligence Committee to remind them of this fact," the committee's nine Democrats wrote in an addendum.

But Hoekstra said the report and others released by the committee are appropriate and educational, no matter the political timing. "People don't recognize that this is a different kind of conflict and a different kind of enemy than we have fought before," he said.

The report devotes significant attention to extremists' electronic messaging, saying the U.S. government must do more to counter terrorists' "unchallenged use of the Internet."

It also praises the CIA's decision in September 2004 to create an office that looks at the politics of Islam. "Still, this is not enough," the report says. "This one program at the CIA can only reach a finite number of people."

CIA spokesman Mark Mansfield said the program examines the issue globally, analyzing long-term issues. "It's a relatively small office, but it's doing extraordinarily important work," he said.

The House committee has been preparing a series of public reports on issues including intelligence overhaul, Iran and an upcoming assessment on North Korea.

When the Iran report was released last month, the International Atomic Energy Agency said the do ent was "outrageous and dishonest" in trying to make a case that Tehran's nuclear program is geared toward making weapons.

Hoekstra conceded there was a problem with one photo caption, which overstated Iran's uranium production capabilities. But he stood by the report's assertion that an IAEA inspector was fired for raising concerns about Iranian deception on its nuclear program. "That is a pretty lousy management style," Hoekstra said.

U.S. intelligence agencies have been asked to review the House reports for accuracy and declassification; the review is not meant to be a signal that the agencies concur with the findings.






Murtha got crucified by the GOP talk radio circuit for making the exact same comments.. wonder if Pete will as well?


but, but, but this is just like WWII...

you mean we can't kill them all?..no