Why does Chertoff still have a job?

by Sheri Divers [courtesy of Blog for America]

Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff tells the media he has a bad feeling that terrorists are about to strike without any credible evidence. And  national media outlets lead with this non-story pulling attention away from the GOP senators slinking away from the war and Bush's Nixon era approval ratings:

"Summertime seems to be appealing to them," Chertoff said in his discussion with the newspaper about terrorists. "We worry that they are rebuilding their activities."

Other U.S. counterterrorism officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, shared Chertoff's concern and said that al Qaeda and like-minded groups have been able to plot and train more freely in the tribal areas along the Afghan-Pakistani border in recent months. Osama bin Laden and his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, are believed to be hiding in the rugged region.

"The threat coming out of there is very real, even if there aren't a lot of specifics attached to it," one of the officials said.

Chertoff's department has not made any move to increase the U.S. color-coded terror alert system. Now, airlines are under orange — or high — alert, which is the second most serious level on a five-point scale. The rest of the country remains a step below at yellow, or elevated.

Chertoff said he is convinced that terrorists are regrouping. "Our edge is technology and the vigilance of the ordinary citizen," he said.

The secretary also urged Americans to be watchful for suspicious activities in the wake of recent terror incidents in England and Scotland. On June 29, two cars packed with gas cylinders and nails were discovered in London's entertainment district. The next day, two extremists smashed their flaming Jeep Cherokee into security barriers at Glasgow Airport's main terminal.

He added, "We could easily be attacked. The intent to attack us remains as strong as it was on Sept. 10, 2001."

Why would anyone take anything Michael Chertoff -- one of the faces of the Katrina debacle --seriously? He has no credibility and EVERYONE in the Bush Administration has been wrong, wrong, WRONG about everything. Chertoff should have been relieved of duty with Brownie back in 2005.

Furthermore, the Bush administration is known to politicize fake terror alerts for their own political benefit. Remember this article in USA Today in 2005?

-Sheri Divers