By James A. Lyons
By arming the rebels, we're aiding al Qaeda
Since the Eisenhower administration, every president with the exception of Jimmy Carter has made varying use of an outside advisory panel that authors Kenneth Michael Absher, Michael C. Desch and Roman Popadiuk term "one of the smallest, most secretive, least well-known, but potentially influential parts of the U.S. intelligence community."
With the nation reeling under the impact of terrorist bombs and urban rioting as Vietnam War protests turned violent, Presidents Johnson and Nixon tasked the CIA with determining whether hostile foreign governments were fostering the deadly turmoil incited by black nationalist groups such as the Black Panther Party (BPP) and New Left outfits such as Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).
