Does Terror Alert Threaten US Soil? White House Won’t Say

Indications are that the specifics of the “imminent” terror plot this week are extremely limited in the intelligence community. Coupled with administration reluctance to share what little they do know, it’s a recipe for wild speculation.

Since the State Department issued a travel alert covering the entire rest of the planet related to the plot, it was natural to ask if the threat extends to US soil as well. The White House refuses to say.

White House spokesman Jay Carney faced a flurry of questions about the plot, and dodged essentially all of them, saying only that the administration is taking “precautions” and believes the threat, whatever it may be, is “significant and ongoing.”

But warnings to the American public that don’t include any details aren’t particularly helpful, and even as they close embassies en masse, the administration concedes they might not even be the target.

While Congressional supporters are attempting to paint the action as vindication of the surveillance state, the embarrassing paucity of information given to the American public underscores the argument that the administration is treating secrecy as an end unto itself, and isn’t particularly concerned with keeping the people apprised of the situation.