Times Article Questions Timing of "Al Qaeda Threat

From today's NY Times:

...But some intelligence officials, terrorism experts - and to some extent even Mr. Ashcroft's own F.B.I. director, Robert S. Mueller III - offered a more tempered assessment, saying, "For the next few weeks we have reason to believe there is a heightened threat to the U.S. interests around the world.'' And some opponents of President Bush, including police and firefighter union leaders aligned with Senator John Kerry, the expected Democratic presidential candidate, said the timing of the announcement appeared intended in part to distract attention from Mr. Bush's sagging poll numbers and problems in Iraq.

The administration did not raise the terrorist threat advisory from its current level of elevated, or yellow, and the White House said Mr. Bush would not alter his schedule because of security concerns.

"There's no real new intelligence, and a lot of this has been out there already," said one administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "There really is no significant change that would require us to change the alert level of the country."

Care for a prediction that doesn't require a call to the Psychic Friends Network?

Whether or not anything happens (and I hope it does not), Bush will continue on his active campaign schedule (leaving no time to be president but then, that's really Cheney's job) and will then take his typical 4-6 weeks off this summer, as will Cheney and company. In the meantime, we'll continue to hear this drumbeat right up to November, trying to scare dissenters from voting against Bush and frighten the general populace into voting for him.