Senator 'boiling' mad over lack of details on Times Square probe

Senate Intelligence Committee ranking member Kit Bond, R-Mo., said late Thursday he was "boiling" mad at the Justice Department for preventing an intelligence agency from giving him details about the probe into Saturday's attempted bombing in New York's Times Square, and vowed to take action in response.

Bond said in an interview that he was getting a classified intelligence briefing earlier Thursday when intelligence officials refused to answer one of his questions. Bond said he directed his staff to call the agency that the official works for to get the answer.

"We called the agency of the intelligence community that should have that information, and they advised us that the Department of Justice is running it and they told us they should not share it with the Intelligence Committee," Bond said.

"I have never seen or even heard of that," he said. "This is not a covert action that might be briefed only to the chair and vice chair. I am just boiling. We'll have appropriate remedies."

Because the briefing was classified, Bond would not identify the agency or official. He also would not disclose what specific subject matter the question involved, saying only that it dealt with an issue that has been reported in the media.

"Stay tuned for this one. This one's not going to go away quickly," Bond said.

On Thursday, the Obama administration held a slew of briefings for lawmakers about the Times Square incident. One specific issue lawmakers have sought details about is whether the government's High-Value Interrogation Group has questioned the prime suspect in the attempted bombing, Faisal Shahzad.

But lawmakers said they have been told not to disclose to the public whether the interrogation group was used or not. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee ranking member Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she knew the answer but would not discuss it.

Bond said he has yet to get an answer about the interrogation group.

Senate Intelligence Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said she did not know what transpired during Bond's intelligence briefing Thursday and is working to set up a briefing of her own. "They are not as free with briefings as I believe they should be," she said of the administration.

When asked for comment, a Justice Department official acknowledged that "multiple federal agencies provided briefings on the Times Square investigation" to several lawmakers and aides.

"At the same time, we have been actively working to arrange a mutually agreeable time to provide similar briefings to appropriate Senate committees and staff," the official said.

Although lawmakers said they could not discuss the issue of the High-Value Interrogation Group, a law enforcement official earlier this week said "elements of the HIG were deployed and the intelligence community was engaged to support the investigation and interrogation."