Staff Reports
The 25th anniversary of 9/11 is not a day for soft talk or ritual gestures. It is a day to look hard at what we knew, who knew it, and what we will do now. Andrew Klavan’s new Daily Wire episode — joined by Sebastian Gorka — pushes that exact point: the country must still fight radicalism and demand real accountability. That message landed alongside a very public intelligence move: the CIA’s release of 71 Presidential Daily Briefs about al‑Qaida and Osama bin Laden. No, history didn’t stop that morning. But history should not get away with lax explanations either.
Why the CIA declassification matters
The CIA’s declassification of 71 Presidential Daily Briefs is headline news for good reason. CIA Director John Ratcliffe called the move “an act of exceptional transparency,” and the PDBs include warnings that al‑Qaida discussed using aircraft as weapons. Those documents add to earlier releases and the 9/11 record. They do not erase the pain of the 2,977 Americans killed that morning, but they do give families and the public more pieces of the puzzle. That matters for truth, for law, and for policy.
Families, lawsuits, and the question of Saudi accountability
At Ground Zero and other memorials, families urged more disclosure and action. Terry Strada and other family leaders pressed for accountability — including pressure on Saudi Arabia — and for records that might finally answer why warnings were missed or ignored. Those newly declassified PDBs could play a role in ongoing lawsuits and civil discovery. If anyone hoped these papers would vanish into a dusty file cabinet, the families made clear they won’t let that happen. They want answers, and they deserve them.
The conservative case: vigilance and facts, not politics
Andrew Klavan and Sebastian Gorka framed the anniversary as a call to fight radicalism, not to score partisan points. President Donald Trump echoed a similar throughline at the Pentagon observance when he said, “That’s why we fight today.” Good. Memorializing the victims without honoring the lessons is cowardice in a suit and tie. Conservatives should lead on demanding better intelligence practices, tougher counter‑radicalization programs, and honest oversight — not the usual bureaucratic theater of blame-shifting. If the CIA wants credit for “exceptional transparency,” then let transparency be complete and unrestricted.
We remember the dead by making sure the living are safer. That means pushing for further declassification where it matters, holding foreign actors to account where evidence points, and refusing to let institutions hide behind “we were busy” or “that’s complicated.” The anniversary is a reminder and a warning: radicalism never sleeps, and neither should our resolve. If politicians or agencies want to pretend the past is closed, the families and conservative voices on this issue should be louder. That’s how you honor 9/11 — with truth, strength, and the refusal to let history be softened into silence.
