It wasn't really a failure of the intelligence community it was a failure of the Bush administration. Bush couldn't believe his "friends" in Saudi Arabia would do anything to harm his administration, after all his family had had a long and profitable association with them for years.

Plus, at the time the Bush administration was up to its neck in scandals (anyone remember the Enron Scandal?). Bush's popularity had cratered and it was looking increasingly like he would loose the midterms and Presidential elections.

[–] ChicoSuave@lemmy.world 17 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

I hate the accuracy of your analysis because you are 100% right that so much of that era was forgotten (except by those who lived it and still hold onto those details). Enron had absolutely turned Texas into scrutiny central and someone in Bush's administration didn't like their friends going to jail for being corrupt. The Bush family had also used their connections to Saud to enrich them and their friends during the 90s without knowing that they were being used. 9/11 is the day Bush realizes it and was completely unable to do anything about it because of hat direct family connection. So instead America invaded Afghanistan and Iraq as a distraction.

The entire foreign policy of right wingers is cleaning up the personal history of the grifters who run the party.