Externe

The NOAH concept of a national collaborative environment
supporting policy and decision-makers mirrors the ideas you
have expressed to me in recent discussions, and it is a
tangible way to confront the growing assymetrical threats to
our nation. I have a number of ideas regarding staffing
options and industry collaboration, and would appreciate the
opportunity to discuss them with you. Thank you for your
consideration. I look forward to hearing from you at your
earliest convenience.
Sincerely,
Curt Weldon,
Member of Congress.

Secretary Hamre was interested and he told me, Congressman, I will
even pay the bill. The Defense Department will provide the funding for
this. And I do not care where they put it, Congressman. It could be at
the White House, it could be at the NSC, wherever it is most
appropriate, but I will pay the bill. But, Congressman, the problem is
not with me or the money. You have got to convince the CIA and the FBI
that this is something they want to pursue.
In fact, he wrote me a letter, Mr. Speaker, dated October 21, 1999:
``Dear Congressman Weldon, I wholeheartedly agree that combating
asymmetrical threats challenging national security requires a
collaborative interagency approach as suggested in your concept of the
National Operations Analysis Hub. We are actively engaged in assessing
how the department should leverage ongoing activities and develop a
long-term strategy along these lines. I will keep you apprised of our
progress. I would be happy to meet with you on the subject.''
And then he puts a personal comment on the note that I will read.
``Sir, this is a mealy-mouth response because no one wants to commit to
a LIWA-based solution. You know I am very impressed by LIWA and see
them involved in a range of activities. I would like to get together
with you to review some of our thinking when you have time. John.''
Mr. Speaker, I would like to place this in the Record.

Deputy Secretary of Defense,

Washington, DC, October 21, 1999.
Hon. Curt Weldon,
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Congressman Weldon: I wholeheartedly agree that
combatting the asymmetrical threats challenging National
Security requires a collaborative, inter-agency approach, as
suggested in your concept of the National Operations Analysis
Hub. We are actively engaged in assessing how the Department
should leverage ongoing activities and develop a long-term
strategy along these lines.
I will keep you apprised of our progress, and I would be
happy to meet with you on this subject.
Sincerely,
John J. Harme.

{time} 2330

Mr. Speaker, that was in October of 1999 at John Hamre's suggestion
on November 4 of 1999, almost 2 years before 9/11. I had John Hamre and
the representatives of the CIA and the FBI in my office. And at John
Hamre's suggestion, we went through the 9-page briefing to create an
overarching national collaborative center. When I finished the briefing
which had been prepared for me with our intelligence officials off the
record, the CIA said, Congressman Weldon, that is all well and good,
but we really do not need that capability. It is not necessary. We are
doing something called CI-21; and, therefore, we do not need to pursue
that multi-system approach that you have outlined where we bring in all
of these other classified systems.
I was very unhappy with that response because I knew full well the
Army and our special forces commands were using that capability at that
very moment in a special project against al Qaeda.
So, Mr. Speaker, in 1999 and in 2000 and in 2001, I put language in
each of our defense bills calling for the creation of a national
collaborative center to bring together our disparate intelligence
capabilities and systems for 3 consecutive years. And, in fact, one of