Book: 9/11 panel exec had close ties to Rice
February 4, 2008
BY HOPE YEN

WASHINGTON -- The Sept. 11 commission's executive director had closer ties with the White House than publicly disclosed and tried to influence the final report in ways that the staff often perceived as limiting the Bush administration's responsibility, a new book says.

Philip Zelikow, a friend of then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, spoke with her several times during the 20-month investigation. He also exchanged frequent calls with the White House, including at least four from Bush's chief political adviser at the time, Karl Rove.

Zelikow once tried to push through wording in a draft report that suggested a greater tie between Osama bin Laden and Iraq, in line with White House claims but not with the commission staff's viewpoint, according to Philip Shenon's The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation.

Shenon, a New York Times reporter, says Zelikow sought to intimidate staff to avoid damaging findings for President Bush, who at the time was running for re-election, and Rice. Zelikow and Rice had written a book together in 1995 and he would later work for her.

Reached by the AP, Zelikow provided a 131-page statement with information he said was provided for the book. In it, Zelikow acknowledges talking to Rove and Rice during the course of the commission's work. But he said the conversations never dealt with politics.

The White House had no immediate comment Sunday.

The book seeks to raise new questions about the independence of the bipartisan commission. Initially opposed by the White House, the panel issued a unanimous final report that did not blame Bush or former President Clinton for the attacks but did say they each failed to make anti-terrorism a priority. AP

Chicago Sun-Times