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The assertion that Bush gave Cheney the okay to shoot down planes is one of the few in the report that is supported solely by statements from Bush and Cheney themselves -- statements which they made when they met together with the Sept. 11 commission. (See my columns from April 28, April 29 and April 30 for all the background on Bush's insistence on not meeting with the commission by himself.)
Esther Schrader lays it out in the Los Angeles Times: "Cheney has told the commission that during one call to Bush, moments after he arrived at the command center, he asked the president to decide on the rules of engagement for combat planes being deployed over Washington. Bush said he authorized that hijacked planes be shot down.
"But the commission staff seemed to question whether the call took place. Its report noted that there were no logs of that phone call between Cheney and Bush. 'Others nearby who were taking notes, such as the vice president's chief of staff, [I. Lewis] Scooter Libby, who sat next to him, and Mrs. Cheney, did not note a call between the president and vice president immediately after the vice president entered the conference room,' the report said.
"Lee H. Hamilton, co-chairman of the Sept. 11 commission, told reporters 'there's no documentary evidence' that Cheney conferred with Bush before issuing the shoot-down order.
" 'And the only evidence you have is the statement of the president and the vice president, which was that the president gave the order to shoot down,' Hamilton said."
The assertion that Bush gave Cheney the okay to shoot down planes is one of the few in the report that is supported solely by statements from Bush and Cheney themselves -- statements which they made when they met together with the Sept. 11 commission. (See my columns from April 28, April 29 and April 30 for all the background on Bush's insistence on not meeting with the commission by himself.)
Esther Schrader lays it out in the Los Angeles Times: "Cheney has told the commission that during one call to Bush, moments after he arrived at the command center, he asked the president to decide on the rules of engagement for combat planes being deployed over Washington. Bush said he authorized that hijacked planes be shot down.
"But the commission staff seemed to question whether the call took place. Its report noted that there were no logs of that phone call between Cheney and Bush. 'Others nearby who were taking notes, such as the vice president's chief of staff, [I. Lewis] Scooter Libby, who sat next to him, and Mrs. Cheney, did not note a call between the president and vice president immediately after the vice president entered the conference room,' the report said.
"Lee H. Hamilton, co-chairman of the Sept. 11 commission, told reporters 'there's no documentary evidence' that Cheney conferred with Bush before issuing the shoot-down order.
" 'And the only evidence you have is the statement of the president and the vice president, which was that the president gave the order to shoot down,' Hamilton said."
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