The Miami Herald du lieu suivant : Miami, Florida • 2

MiamiHeraldcom THE MIAMI HERALD FROM THE FRONT PAGE 2A TUESDAY DECEMBER 21 2005 WAR ON TERRORISM FBI intelligence deputy grew up in Miami backlog of untranslated material have hindered the bureau's efforts Some critics have called for a separate domestic intelligence service which Mudd said would be "totally misguided" and cause more bureaucratic confusion He is adamant that the FBI is making progress "Anytime you move this fast with change in an organization of 30000 the fur will fly" Mudd said The National Security Branch headed by Gary Bald and Mudd is the latest effort by the FBI to organize and energize its intelligence work from analysts to agents especially against terrorism Mudd says US intelligence to deal with terrorism must be nimble to track "a moving changing target" He worries that foreign fighters who get into Iraq may get out and take what they learned elsewhere When the "frenzy" of his job gets too much Mudd has the perfect escape Twice a year he goes fiat-fishing off Key Biscayne Cutler Ridge or Islamorada "You can see the skyline of Miami but you're really away It's the best way I know how to step back from vided a connection to his future career in the CIA After he graduated from Villanova University and received a master's degree in literature from the University of Virginia Mudd wasn't sure what to do His father told him that the man who sat next to them at Dolphins games said the CIA was hiring "I drove my Chevette up to the main gate of the CIA and gave them my resume The guard asked 'Son what are you doing he recalled In 1985 Mudd was hired RISING WITHIN THE CIA Mudd became an expert on Iran and South Asia worked with Ambassador James Dobbins in Afghanistan and rose to deputy chief of the CIA's counterterrorism center That's where he spent plenty of time with FBI agents melding overseas intelligence with domestic investigations after Sept 11 which made his switch to the FBI much easier This year the FBI has come under a wave of criticism from Congress and even the inspector general of the Justice Department for not moving fast enough to adapt to the threat of terrorists The expensive failure of a software overhaul high turnover among top officials and a "MUDD FROM 1A CIA and the passion and intensity of an official who admits he is still shaken hy the toll of Sept "In the back of my mind I always have the faces from The New York Times series the people who died that day" Mudd said "All those people Their kids will never see them again It's intense and very motivational" The leadership of the al Qaeda network has been "decimated" by the war in Afghanistan aggressive "takedowns" of top terrorists in Pakistan and the "war in the shadows" around the world Mudd said In the process al Qaeda has become less of a network and more of a movement US STILL VULNERABLE That has helped prevent assaults on US soil since Sept 11 but Mudd worries that the United States is still susceptible to attack from a new generation of potentially violent extremists "These people may have been born here They have not received training or money from al Qaeda but they received something more important the power of an idea" Mudd said "These are people who believe suicide bombing is acceptable" Tracking terrorists and trying to improve the FBI's counterintelligence may seem a far cry from the ball fields of LaSalle where Mudd who grew up in South Miami played second base and occasionally pitched His team's catcher was Jose Cubas now a well-known agent for players who defected from Cuba "The entire team was Cuban and I didn't really fit in but I loved playing ball" Mudd recalled He still tries to take in a UM baseball game or two each year He said his work as an analyst did benefit from the relentless drilling he received earlier from the sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary at Epiphany Elementary School "Clear writing aggressive reading demanding grammar they were unrelenting in what they asked of us" Mudd said "I think of that when I'm writing a memo to Director Mueller" His father who worked in real estate and his mother a teacher at Barry University still live part of the year in Coral Gables Mudd has fond memories of season tickets to Dolphins games which pro- HnH 5 ANDREW COUNCILLKRT FBI DEPUTY: Philip Mudd is the deputy director of the new National Security Branch at the FBI His job is to think like the enemy' al Qaeda and stop terrorism threats ECUADOR Notary's scheme has locals fuming Esr investigating the case But the mystery surrounding the man who was president of the Ecuadorean Notary Federation only seems to deepen with each passing day "He was very reserved" said the federation's current president Jorge Machado in a telephone interview "And he-was professional Now we know of his parallel activities" The US government is now investigating whether Cabrera's finances were connected to money laundering drug trafficking or arms deals US officials say Because of its proximity to the Peruvian border Machala is known as a hub for this type of illicit activity And Ecuadorean investigators say they are now feeling the pressure to drop the investigation altogether The current lead investigator in Machala Rene Ormaza said he has received threats via telephone telling him to "be careful" Ormaza's predecessor was removed from the job because he had invested money with Cabrera Machala in search of their money In all 17 members of the armed forces six policemen and one banker have been arrested so far the banker for permitting Cabrera to pay his investors through the bank the military personnel and police for their involvement in ransacking the office Some 3000 active and retired members of the military and police are reported to have given Cabrera money as well as a handful of businessmen judges and politicians The scandal reached so high that it has been mentioned as the reason why President Alfredo Palacio replaced the joint chiefs of staff earlier this month Pala-cio's government has declined to explain the changes UPSET RESIDENTS Meanwhile Machala residents remained upset Many had pooled their money to make the $10000 minimum sometimes mortgaging their homes or selling their possessions in the process Cabrera often rewarded them with their first interest payment on the spot But after his death was announced and the scheme was revealed many wondered whether Cabrera had faked his death and absconded with their money In November a mob descended on the cemetery unearthed the notary's body and began scraping pieces of skin and other possible DNA evidence to be brought to local coroners HAVING DOUBTS Even after the government announced that the body was Cabrera's the leader of an ad-hoc victims' group said they would appeal for more tests "We doubt that he died the way the press and the authorities say he did" the head of the group Paul Gonzalez told the press following the autopsy report of the exhumed body The run on Cabrera's office and his grave was so traumatic that several banks issued a statement saying they were in good financial standing Palacio and his minister of defense have had to issue repeated statements assuring the public they are SCHEME FROM 1A who watched the whole sordid affair unfold said in a telephone interview "But when he died everything was lost" After giving a news conference assuring investors that they were trying to sort out their father's business Cabrera's son and daughter disappeared in early November Authorities believe they are living in Miami and are preparing a request for their capture and extradition CHAOTIC SCRAMBLE The son and daughter's departure set off a chaotic scramble by the investors to recoup some of their money Between Nov 11 and 13 Mach-ala residents as well as military and police personnel ransacked Cabrera's office Videos taken those days show police walking from the scene with cash falling from the sides of their bulletproof vests Investigators are also looking into the unauthorized use of 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stand even a slim chance of trouble in November: Reps Richard Pombo of Tracy and to a lesser extent David Dreier of San Dimas PLAUSIBLE SCENARIOS Nationally independent analysts say that plausible Democratic scenarios for taking over the House assume the party will capture not a single Republican seat in California or perhaps just one: Cunningham's And for Busby or any other Democrat to win a district as heavily Republican as Cunningham's it would take a political "earthquake" said Gary Jacobson author of The Politics of Congressional Elections "Republicans will rightly become very nervous if she wins" said Jacobson a University of California San Diego political science professor A self-described Encinitas The race to win former Rep Randy 'Duke' Cunningham's San Diego County congressional seat could prove decisive for Democrats' efforts to regain control of Congress BY MICHAEL FINNEGAN Los Angeles Times Service The downfall of former Rep Randy "Duke" Cunningham in a bribery scandal has cleared the way for a surprisingly competitive race for his San Diego County congressional seat a contest that will test the strength of Democratic efforts to regain control of Congress In a poor political climate for the GOP analysts say a suburban coastal district of California even one that leans as Republican as Cunningham's is just the kind that could prove the leading edge of a potential national tide against the party Yet Democratic candidate Francine Busby faces a steep uphill battle thanks to a California congressional map drawn to protect incumbents of both major parties The district was shaped to strongly favor a Republican so it would take a major political shift for voters there to put a Democrat in Congress And therein lies the trouble for Democrats trying to expand tHeir hold on Califor "soccer mom" Busby 54 is a Cardiff School Board trustee who teaches a "Women Changing the World" class at Cal State San Marcos She is a former Republican who became a Democrat in the late 1990s a switch prompted she said by the "extreme direction" taken by the GOP When Busby first ran for Congress last year Cunningham easily defeated her 59 percent to 37 percent At the same time Bush carried the district over Massachusetts Sen John Kerry 55 percent to 44 percent This time Busby has assets she lacked last year most importantly more money: She has already reported raising about $250000 exceeding what she spent on the entire campaign last time Her endorsement by Emily's List a national group that pools money for women who back abortion rights offers a rich source of more cash Another potential edge for Busby is the unpredictable nature of any special election for an open seat In an August special election in Ohio a Democrat who served in the Iraq war as a Marine reservist fell just short of winning a vacant House seat in a staunchly Republican district Working in Busby's fnvor too is the fractured Republi can field About half a dozen Republicans are running in the April 11 election which could produce a bruised GOP nominee to face Busby in a June 6 runoff that will occur if no one wins more than half the vote Busby is the only major Democrat on the April ballot RESIGNATION Cunningham resigned from Congress after pleading guilty last month to taking at least $24 million in bribes from military contractors Republicans say they are confident they can hold the seat "Outside of Cunningham's resigning nothing has changed in this district" said Carl Forti communications director of the National Republican Congressional Committee Busby has made ethics her main campaign theme vowing to restore "honesty and integrity" to Congress Her approach will offer Democrats an early test of their national strategy of attacking what they call a Republican culture of corruption Across the country Democrats are spotlighting the Cunningham bribes and the indictments of former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and I Lewis "Scooter" Iibby Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff For Style Functions: 'Epsilon" Sofa Sofa-Bed Recliner in Stock in Fabric (ij ii i a i i mrti ii i.