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Delivered-To: john.podesta@gmail.com Received: by 10.151.98.20 with SMTP id a20cs476762ybm; Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:16:35 -0700 (PDT) Received: by 10.90.55.9 with SMTP id d9mr1898672aga.40.1218723395582; Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:16:35 -0700 (PDT) Return-Path: <rscottlilly@hotmail.com> Received: from bay0-omc3-s21.bay0.hotmail.com (bay0-omc3-s21.bay0.hotmail.com [65.54.246.221]) by mx.google.com with ESMTP id 20si2562576agb.38.2008.08.14.07.16.35; Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:16:35 -0700 (PDT) Received-SPF: pass (google.com: domain of rscottlilly@hotmail.com designates 65.54.246.221 as permitted sender) client-ip=65.54.246.221; Authentication-Results: mx.google.com; spf=pass (google.com: domain of rscottlilly@hotmail.com designates 65.54.246.221 as permitted sender) smtp.mail=rscottlilly@hotmail.com Received: from BAY129-W31 ([65.55.134.66]) by bay0-omc3-s21.bay0.hotmail.com with Microsoft SMTPSVC(6.0.3790.3959); Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:13:05 -0700 Message-ID: <BAY129-W31308ED2B12F466F609B8BBE720@phx.gbl> Return-Path: rscottlilly@hotmail.com Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="_191226cf-382d-4b64-9b96-38956e54a659_" X-Originating-IP: [65.199.13.40] From: Scott Lilly <rscottlilly@hotmail.com> To: denis.mcdonough@gmail.com, dmcdonough@barackobama.com Subject: U.S. Intelligence Failure in Georgia Date: Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:13:04 -0400 Importance: Normal MIME-Version: 1.0 X-OriginalArrivalTime: 14 Aug 2008 14:13:05.0212 (UTC) FILETIME=[DE95C7C0:01C8FE17] --_191226cf-382d-4b64-9b96-38956e54a659_ Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Denis=2C =20 I have it on good authority that the DNI was completely caught off guard by= the Russian invasion. He was=2C according to my information=2C watching CN= N with his mouth wide open.=20 This is a collosal failure of U.S. intelligence.=20 =20 The word inside the community is that overhead and other resources were so = fully tasked on Iraq and Afghanistan that little was left for the South Cau= cuses. That indicates that the security costs presented by the Iraq occupat= ion are even more profound than believed by many of us who worried about th= at issue.=20 =20 But even that explanation is insufficient to explain how the Russians could= have prepared for such an operation and executed it without our being aler= ted. They clearly constrained radio and telephone communications=2C covered= their efforts to raise unit readiness and set a carefully planned manuever= into motion without tripping a single trigger of U.S. information collecti= on--all this despite the fact that we had U.S. military forces in the targe= t country.=20 =20 The fact that we had so little monitoring raises serious questions about wh= ether the administration was exercising an appropriate level of scepticism = about Russian intentions. Their desire to recover their lost possessions in= the region--at least Georgia and Azerbaijan--have been widely known and pr= e date Putin.=20 =20 For more than four decades the Republican party has cast itself as heirs to= the traditions of Wiston Churchill and cast Democrats as naive about our e= nemies and unwilling to use the force necessary to protect the nation's int= erest. The administration's performance with Russia indicates that they mor= e closely approximate Neville Chamberland than we do.=20 Scott Lilly 3110 North 17th Street Arlington=2C VA 22201= --_191226cf-382d-4b64-9b96-38956e54a659_ Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <html> <head> <style> .hmmessage P { margin:0px=3B padding:0px } body.hmmessage { FONT-SIZE: 10pt=3B FONT-FAMILY:Tahoma } </style> </head> <body class=3D'hmmessage'> <FONT color=3D#000080 size=3D2><FONT color=3D#0000ff size=3D2> Denis=2C<BR> =3B<BR> I have it on good authority that the DNI was completely caught off guard by= the Russian invasion. He was=2C according to my information=2C watching CN= N with his mouth wide open. <BR> This is a collosal failure of U.S. intelligence. <BR> =3B<BR> The word inside the community is that overhead and other resources were so = fully tasked on Iraq and Afghanistan that little was left for the South Cau= cuses. That indicates that the security costs presented by the Iraq occupat= ion are even more profound than believed by many of us who worried about th= at issue. <BR> =3B<BR> But even that explanation is insufficient to explain how the Russians could= have prepared for such an operation and executed it without our being aler= ted. They clearly constrained radio and telephone communications=2C covered= their efforts to raise unit readiness and set a carefully planned manuever= into motion without tripping a single trigger of U.S. information collecti= on--all this despite the fact that we had U.S. military forces in the targe= t country. <BR> =3B<BR> The fact that we had so little monitoring raises serious questions about wh= ether the administration was exercising an appropriate level of scepticism = about Russian intentions. Their desire to recover their lost possessions in= the region--at least Georgia and Azerbaijan--have been widely known and pr= e date Putin. <BR> =3B<BR> For more than four decades the Republican party has cast itself as heirs to= the traditions of Wiston Churchill and cast Democrats as naive about our e= nemies and unwilling to use the force necessary to protect the nation's int= erest. The administration's performance with Russia indicates that they mor= e closely approximate Neville Chamberland than we do. <BR></FONT></FONT><FO= NT size=3D2></FONT><BR><BR> <DIV><FONT face=3D"Lucida Handwriting=2C Cursive" color=3D#0000cc size=3D4>= <EM>Scott Lilly <BR></EM></FONT><FONT size=3D2>3110 North 17th Street <BR>A= rlington=2C VA =3B =3B =3B </FONT><FONT size=3D1>22201</FONT></= DIV></body> </html>= --_191226cf-382d-4b64-9b96-38956e54a659_--