There are significant factions within CIA, DIA, State Dept. Intelligence, and for that matter the FBI, that refuse to even investigate the possibility of Iraq-al Qaeda cooperation.

Some of this is due to institutional pride. They missed it for ten years and now do not wish to have their view of the world upset by reality, especially by those know-nothing rubes in the Bush administration. "How dare they politicize intelligence. We professionals know the score."

Part of it is also due the influence of Clinton appointees who still remain.

We're seeing the effects of this now in this Plame leak/scandal. CIA sent Plame's husband, who has links to the Saudis and Democrat politicians to Niger to check out the Uranium story. This guy spent a week chatting with people, not digging very hard, came home, and said, "nope, nuthin here."

And then Wilson went to the press with his story.

The CIA is out of control, and will probably remain so as long as Tenet is DCI. The worst part is, I'm not sure Bush is bright enough to figure this out on his own.