Obama says ‘systemic failure’ to blame for Detroit plane incident

The White House made clear Tuesday that the failed
Christmas Day bombing of a Northwest Airlines flight could have been foiled in advance.

President Barack Obama blamed a “systemic
failure” in intelligence and security practices that allowed a 23-year-old
Nigerian national to board a flight headed for Detroit and allegedly attempt to
set off an explosive device. He faulted agencies for not piecing together bits
of information that could have foiled the attack, including the suspected
attacker’s father warning the U.S. embassy in Nigeria.

{mosads}Instead, passengers on the flight ended up stopping
the suspected assailant.

“Had this critical information been shared it
could have been compiled with other intelligence and a fuller, clearer picture
of the suspect would have emerged.  The warning signs would have triggered
red flags and the suspect would have never been allowed to board that plane for
America,” Obama said, breaking into his vacation in Hawaii for a second
day in a row to discuss the attack.

Obama said Tuesday that key personnel will “diagnose
the problems quickly” and he promised “more comprehensive reviews
will be completed in the coming weeks.” He set a Thursday deadline for
officials to provide him with preliminary information on their review.

Obama lamented the failure to share the intelligence
within the community, saying he considers it “totally unacceptable.”

The president said the intelligence “should have
and could have been pieced together.”

Obama was briefed Tuesday morning by National
Security Adviser Jim Jones and other advisers, who made it clear to Obama that
the government was in possession of pieces of information in advance of the
attempted Christmas Day attack that if properly assessed and correlated could have
allowed the government to disrupt the attack, according to a senior
administration official. The official said the information could have ensured
that the suspected attacker was placed on a no-fly list.

The official said some of the information was incomplete
and partial, but that the information was about the “individual in
question and his plans.” The government also had information about al
Qaeda and its plans and about potential attacks during the holiday period.

“It was not obvious or readily apparent that all
of it spoke to this attack, but in fact we believe it did,” the official
said.

The suspected terrorist, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab,
was able to board the Northwest flight from Amsterdam to Detroit even though
his father had contacted U.S. embassy officials to warn that his son had cut
off contact with his family. Abdulmutallab’s father was worried that his son
had become radicalized.

Abdulmutallab has been charged with trying to blow up
a plane.

An al Qaeda group has claimed responsibility for the
attack. The senior administration official said he could not say conclusively
that al Qaeda planned the attack, but did say information developed overnight
suggested a linkage.

The administration has faced mounting criticism from
Republicans over how a Nigerian national was able to retain a visa and fly into
the U.S. even after his name was included in a terrorism database.
Congressional hearings are planned for January.

The withering assessment by Obama comes days after
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano came under criticism for initially
stating the system had worked. On Monday, Napolitano said her words were taken
out of context, and she acknowledged the system had not worked.

This story was originally posted at 5:06 and updated at 10:45 p.m.