To the Editor:

Re “Same People, Same Threat” (news analysis, front page, July 18):

It is disappointing to read the twist that the Democrats and the mainstream media put on the recent National Intelligence Estimate.

Your news analysis asks, “Are we safer?” The answer is emphatically yes. Our efforts to combat terrorism worldwide have prevented Al Qaeda from attacking the United States since Sept. 11, 2001, and have disrupted known terrorist plots to carry out further attacks on American soil.

In addition, other terrorist groups now perceive the United States as a harder target to strike. This means that the hard work of our men and women in the military, our intelligence services and our first responders has paid off.

It is clear that if we abandon Iraq as some want us to do right now, Al Qaeda will establish a safe haven there. This would give terrorists the resources of the petroleum-rich country to finance their operations, significantly increasing the threat of future attacks on the United States.

While I agree that we had the wrong plan for three years, we now have the right one, and the right man to lead it. The proper conclusion to be drawn from the N.I.E. findings is that Congress and the American people must remain vigilant and committed to the war on terror and its central front in Iraq.

(Senator) Kit Bond
Washington, July 19, 2007
The writer is vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.