According to an NPR report this morning, members of the 9/11 Commission, and the Victims Families Steering Committee are scattering around the country to campaign for the Commission’s recommendations. This is a “bi-partisan” effort. Personally, I would prefer an non-partisan effort.
The main thing they want is for Congress and the President to implement all their recommendations. In other words, the Commissioners want control. No debate. Just accept what we said and do it. Now. If there was any doubt about the political nature of the commission, this should end that doubt.
Congress, for their part, want the proposed Intelligence Chief to have budgetary power. In the words of several senators and congressmen in the 88 committees and sub-committees that oversee Homeland Security, he or she would have no authority without it. I can’t believe it even after writing it down! And they all want better congressional oversight. Funny, I don’t see anything in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution which gives them “oversight” authority over the Executive Branch. They control the budget, but prefer to have the President submit one each year.
Please save the politics for the campaign trail and simply do the job we hired you to do. Remember, you are our employees, not the other way around.