According to a news release put out by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Pentagon had changed its mind about allowing five Able Danger personnel to testify publicly in the committee’s probe of the data-mining operation. Specter’s statement said they would testify at a committee hearing Oct. 5. That’s news to Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman. Whitman told the Associated Press that DOD’s concerns “have not changed,” but discussions were continuing on the matter. The Senator’s office begs to differ. A spokesman said the two parties had reached an agreement. And, the hearing will be public.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
