THIS FAR AND NO FURTHER
A Timeline of Events Surrounding the Radical Right's Attempt to Subvert American Democracy
Written and Compiled by Black Max
2001
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Highlights of This Page
Bush takes office. False allegations of Clinton staff trashing White House leak from Bush officials. Bush administration shelves Clinton plan to counter terrorism, and refuses to take all but the most cursory action against Islamic terror groups, instead favoring spending on outdated missile shield programs. Vice President Cheney chairs secret energy policy group; beginning of Bush administration efforts to wrest power away from Congress. Bush discusses possible pre-emptive strike of Iraq with NSC. US intelligence agencies ordered to back off of investigations into bin Laden family connections to terror groups and Pakistan's provision of nuclear technology to rogue states. Hart-Rudman report on terrorism issued; Bush administration ignores it. Tax cuts for wealthy; repeal of estate tax. Bush administration advocates "regime change" in Iraq. Japanese fishing boat sunk by US submarine. Secret plans to overthrow Hussein are made by Bush officials. EPA rolls back arsenic standards. EP-3 spyplane crashes in China; Bush officials allow Chinese to strip plane of sensitive equipment. Blizzard of terror warnings are ignored by administration. Chandra Levy disappears; Democrat Gary Condit is falsely accused of her murder. "star Wars" revived. Allegations of Clinton transition team "trashing" White House are proven false. Bush slashes Operation Catchers Mitt, a CIA/FBI program that tracks al-Qaeda terrorists inside the US. Republican senator Jeffords leaves GOP, giving control of Senate to Democrats. Systematic exclusion of minorities in 2000 election proven. "Operation Diamondback." Tenet, Black meet to give Rice urgent warning of imminent al-Qaeda attack; Rice ignores warnings. Illegal activities in Florida by Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris proven. Clandestine meetings between US officials and Taliban continue. SEPTEMBER 11 ATTACKS ON WORLD TRADE CENTER AND PENTAGON. Bush administration uses attacks to justify invasion of Afghanistan and later Iraq. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld forms secret "Office of Special Plans." Poor intelligence reports of Iraqi efforts to buy uranium from Niger galvanizes the adminstration to accuse Iraq of working to create nuclear weapons. Dozens of members of bin Laden family, including terror suspects, are allowed to leave US secretly. Bush begins illegal "rendition" policy of sending US terror suspects to other countries for interrogation and torture. Bush promises to get Osama bin Laden "dead or alive." Secret plans to invade Iraq in the works. Office of Homeland Security created. Iraqi exile Ahmad Chalabi refocuses administration's intent to invade Iraq, offers 9/11 as an excuse for invasion. Justice Department memo says Constitutional limits on executive power in waging war are irrelevant. USA Patriot Act rammed through Congress. US launches long-planned offensive against Afghanistan. Anthrax mailings kill several; anthrax letters are sent to two leading Democrats. CIA learns of purported scheme for Iraq to buy large amount of uranium from Niger. Influential American media reports of Hussein's involvement in 9/11 based on fraudulent information from an imposter. Investigation proves Florida recounts would have given election to Gore; media misrepresents findings. Tora Bora escape allows bin Laden to flee. Bush asks Rumsfeld to begin planning for Iraq invasion. Bush announces US withdrawal from ABM treaty and its intent to deploy banned anti-missile satellite defense systems (Star Wars). "Winter Hill" Mob investigation hindered by Bush executive order invoking secrecy.
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