Malign Neglect

Attorney General Eric Holder spoke with confidence and authority before the Senate Judiciary Committee last Wednesday when asked how he would prevent another attack like the one committed by Nidal Malik Hasan at Fort Hood. I think what we have to do is understand exactly what happened that led to that tragedy. Were there flags that were missed? Were there miscommunications or was there a lack of communication? Holder promised a "sound investigation" of the shooting. It was a nice try, but Holder's tone did little to disguise the speciousness of his words. We already know the answer to the three questions Holder posed. There were flags that were missed. There was miscommunication. And there was a lack of communication. The relevant question is not whether there were errors, but why--after eight years of restructuring our national security and intelligence infrastructure to prevent such failures--there were grave errors that cost 13 people their lives. The answer to that question is becoming all too clear: a deadly combination of political correctness and institutional stupidity. And in the days since the Fort Hood attack, those characteristics have remained on prominent display--both at the top of the Justice Department and in its ranks...read more