Preview of 9/11 Commission Final Report

9/11 Panel Calls for Major Changes

The final report of the commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks recommends a major restructuring of the nation's intelligence community and includes broad criticism of the White House, Congress and other parts of the U.S. government for failing to detect, thwart and better respond to the deadly hijackings, according to panel members and other officials.

The book-length report -- being readied for public release on Thursday -- has been endorsed by all 10 of the bipartisan panel's members. It features many of the findings that emerged from public hearings and staff investigations, including the conclusion that al Qaeda and Iraq did not form a close working relationship, commission officials said.

But the final report goes beyond the detailed findings of the commission's staff, scolding Congress for poor oversight of the nation's counterterrorism efforts and urging specific and dramatic reforms that include creation of a powerful national counterterrorism center, according to administration officials and those involved in drafting the document. The new center would have far greater authority than the Terrorist Threat Integration Center opened by the CIA last year, officials said.

You will have to register with the Washington Post to read this long article. Washington Post reporters have received a detailed briefing about the contents of the final report. Most of the material is already familiar from the 17 staff statements that have been previously released.

One thing to bear in mind is that the final report had to be cleared with the White House for security reasons. I am sure the White House has redacted any findings and conclusions that they consider to be politically damaging, unless these findings and conclusions have already been made public in previous staff statements.