United States Senate
Select Committee on Intelligence
Washington, DC 20510-6475
SSCI#2003-3958The Honorable Bob Graham
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510Dear Bob:
Thank you for your letter of July 30th concerning the public release of redacted portions from Part Four of the Report of the Joint Inquiry into the Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001. The Committee and the nation owe you a debt of gratitude for your work while Chairman of the Intelligence Committee to bring the Report of the Joint Inquiry to fruition.
We are aware of the keen interest among many of our colleagues in further declassification of this material. On September 4, the Committee held a hearing with Director Robert Mueller and Deputy Director of Central Intelligence John McLaughlin to hear the Administration's justification for continuing to classify the information. Based on this testimony and our own review of the information, it is our view that release of additional information from Part Four could adversely affect ongoing counterterrorism efforts. We will continue to monitor the Intelligence Community's efforts to uncover any foreign links to the September 11 hijackers and will work with the Administration to make information available to the public as appropriate.
If we can be of further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
Pat Roberts
ChairmanJohn D. Rockefeller IV
Vice Chairman