National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States

The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, was set up in late 2002 "to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the" September 11, 2001 attacks including preparedness for and the immediate response to the attacks. The commission was also mandated to provide recommendations designed to guard against future attacks. Some have compared its important, and potentially controversial, role to that of the Warren Commission of 1963-1964.

Members

The members of the Commission were:

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• Thomas Kean (Chairman) - Republican, former Governor of New Jersey
• Lee H. Hamilton (Vice Chairman) - Democrat, former U.S. Representative from the 9th District of Indiana
• Richard Ben-Veniste - Democrat, attorney, former chief of the Watergate Task Force of the Watergate Special Prosecutor's Office
• Fred F. Fielding - Republican, attorney and former White House Counsel
• Jamie Gorelick - Democrat, former Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton Administration
• Slade Gorton - Republican, former Senator from Washington
• Bob Kerrey - Democrat, President of the New School University and former Senator from Nebraska
• John F. Lehman - Republican, former Secretary of the Navy
• Timothy J. Roemer - Democrat, former U.S. Representative from the 3rd District of Indiana
• James R. Thompson - Republican, former Governor of Illinois

The Commission's Executive Director was Philip D. Zelikow, and the Deputy Executive Director was Christopher Kojm.

Related Topics:
Philip D. Zelikow - Christopher Kojm

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Past and present government officials who were called to testify include:

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• Colin Powell - Former United States Secretary of State
• Richard Armitage - Deputy Secretary of State
• Madeline Albright - Former Secretary of State
• Donald H. Rumsfeld - United States Secretary of Defense
• Paul Wolfowitz - Deputy Secretary of Defense
• William Cohen - former Secretary of Defense
• Condoleezza Rice - National Security Advisor to the President
• Sandy Berger - former National Security Advisor
• Richard Clarke - former Counter-terrorism officer in the George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush Administrations

President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, former President Bill Clinton, and former Vice President Al Gore all gave private testimony. President Bush and Vice President Cheney insisted on testifying together, while Clinton and Gore met with the panel separately.

Related Topics:
Dick Cheney - Al Gore

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