The current war on terrorism and intelligence gathering in the United States served as the key subject discussed by former FBI anti-terrorism task force director Danny Coulson. Coulson, who also founded the task force, provided insight on the Sept. 11 attacks and other terrorist-related topics last night during an event sponsored by the Great Issues Committee.
Coulson began his speech clarifying that his perspective was not as a politician or diplomat, but as an operator-“someone who retrieves hostages, who brings terrorism to justice” and “understands the realistic reasons why things go wrong.”
U.S. intelligence operations, Coulson said, have been impeded in several ways, especially under recent administrations. “There has been a breakdown in the intelligence community,” he said. “You can look back historically at what caused intelligence agencies to function not the way they should.”
Such causes include additional guidelines and restrictions on the FBI’s ability to counter terrorist activity. For example, Coulson stated that one guideline required that in order to investigate possible terrorist activity by domestic groups, evidence must be presented suggesting that these groups were about to commit crimes. Domestic intelligence cases summarily dropped from approximately 100 to 10 cases.
Bureaucracy and passive management also hindered intelligence activity, Coulson said. “Headquarters always says, `No.’ Field people always say, `Charge,'” he observed. “With international and domestic terrorism, you have less and less being investigated . There is a web of bureaucracy you have to fight through before you can get a case through.”
Coulson also cited increased use of technology and electronic means as a reason for cutting back improvements in human intelligence. Putting restrictions on CIA informants, cutting back on FBI operations previously considered standardized in the past and prohibiting the use of information from anyone who has previously committed acts of violence are also regulations that have curbed the quality of intelligence gathering.
Intelligence agencies, he said, are limited in their abilities to gather information, and congressional limits have hindered the recruitment, training and paying of personnel. Agencies also lack employees who understand other cultures.
“If you can’t link these huge amounts of information, you’re at a terrible disadvantage,” Coulson said.
“There’s an inability to analyze information, to collect the information . that prevents you from doing the things you have to do.”
Looking at the state of terrorism intelligence just prior to the Sept. 11 attacks, Coulson said, “The U.S. government did not deal with terrorism in an appropriate manner.” He cited the lack of action taken by the U.S. in several events, including the bombing of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. “What did we do about it?” Coulson asked. “We did nothing about it.” The only message that the United States sends to terrorists when it takes no actions to counterattacks, Coulson said, is: “We won’t fight.”
“If you don’t stand up for your country, if you don’t defend your country,” he added, “they’re going to come at us again.”
Despite these setbacks in intelligence operations, Coulson supports current endeavors by the U.S. military against al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. “The U.S. is being very aggressive-that’s the way it should be,” he said.
Coulson noted that some may oppose the use of violence, as violence is a primary ingredient used by terrorists; however, there is a difference:
“[The terrorists] were ready to die to commit murder. We were willing to die to save lives,” he said, referring to New York City firefighters and others who were killed during the World Trade Center rescue operations.
“It’s going to be a long, long war,” Coulson concluded, “but it’s something we can do if we sustain ourselves.”
Following his speech, Coulson answered questions from the audience of about 75, which included Saint Louis University students and members of the local FBI community.
A native Texan, Coulson served with the FBI from 1966 until 1997. He received his bachelors of arts degree in government from Texas Christian University in 1963 and his law degree from Southern Methodist University in 1966, passing the Texas Bar that same year. He was a key participant in the Ruby Ridge stand-off, Waco, the Atlanta prison riots and the Oklahoma City bombing.
Coulson currently works as a security consultant and has appeared on such programs as MSNBC’s “Hard Ball” and CBS’s “Sunday Morning Show.” Coulson authored the best-selling book, No Heroes: Inside the FBI’s Secret Counter-Terror Force.
