MEMORANDUM
Dan Marcus and Steve Dunne have not read this memo, but they helped shape its
contents and they agree with the recommendations in it.
For our own scheduling reasons, we are currently pressing for a briefing of all
commissioners next Thursday, October 2. This will then become a key Commission
meeting on that issue and on EOP #3. So, by then, and to avoid further friction or press
problems, we hope that we can have resolved the follow-up issues. Ideally this would
mean a face-to-face meeting involving the two of you at the White House, for closure,
sometime late in the day on Wednesday, October 1, depending on when Tom can arrive.
Another advantage of October 2 is that it would allow time for staff to follow up on the
plan outlined below before folks take off for foreign lands.
But we nonetheless recommend the subcommittee approach. There is a tradeoff here and
we think this route is most likely to get the Commission past this volatile problem. If we
insist on review by all ten commissioners, the logistics of managing this review under the
procedures laid out below would be difficult. The White House can also too easily
outmaneuver us.
Politically, because we will be fighting over the issue often versus two, or four.
Not so compelling. After all, that practice is followed on the Hill and was
followed by the Joint Inquiry.
Also, would we then refuse to look at the documents unless all ten commissioners
could see them? That would then hurt the report, while we lacked any option to
force them to give access to the ten. Could be a lose/lose proposition.
But a loophole...? If the subcommittee does the review, it would still leave open the
possibility that it would identify one or two PDBs (the famous Aug 6 one for example) so
vital that we would ask that every commissioner must see it. We would still be able to
make that request and, to borrow a phrase, articulate our specific, particularized need.
PDB Proposal
I have spoken to Jamie Gorelick and have her bottom line requirements for a proposal she
will stand by, even if Tim and Richard are unhappy with it. They are incorporated in our
recommendations. So, beyond the briefing ...
Issue #1: Cull the 320 assembled PDB items/articles. The items requiring close
Commission scrutiny must be separated for more detailed examination. We hope this
will result in a relatively small subset of items.
Option D: Staff to do this. Philip and Chris could do this culling on behalf of the
Commission. This option is what we recommend. Handles this modest
but vital duty in a low-key way.
Issue #2: Review of Key PDBs. We believe that commissioners must be able to directly
review the important PDBs. In all options at least two staffers would also need to be able
to review the documents as well.
Option B: Notetaking allowed but the notes permanently held by White House,
available for later referral but may not be taken back to the Commission.
Jamie will go along with this, leaving for the future the issue of whether
we would be able to take notes from our notes. This is the option we
recommend.
We're not at all sure the White House will agree to the proposals we recommend here.
But we think this is the line we should be willing to defend, all the way up to the
President if necessary.