Hillary: White House Higher-ups to Blame for Bogus 9/11 EPA Report

U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton demanded answers on Tuesday about a misleading Environmental Protection Agency report issued just days after the 9/11 attacks, saying she suspects "somebody further up the chain" at the White House "probably" gave the order to omit or change information on the dangers posed by airborne contaminants in and around Ground Zero.

"Somebody picked up the phone, somebody got on a computer, somebody sent an email, somebody called for a meeting, somebody in that White House probably under instructions from somebody further up the chain told the EPA, 'Don't tell the people of New York the truth,'" Clinton told reporters.

"And I want to know who that is," she angrily insisted.

Last week a report released by the EPA's inspector general, Nikki Tinsley, alleged that the White House ordered the agency to downplay the threat posed by Ground Zero air.

Instead of revealing the dangers in the days after 9/11, Tinsley said the EPA was ordered to certify that the air was safe despite inadequate testing.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, who represents the Ground Zero district, has called for a Justice Department probe into possible criminal charges against both EPA and White House officials.

"The White House and the EPA chose to increase the threat to the health and lives of New Yorkers by lying about the environmental conditions, by telling people that the air was safe to breathe and that they could go back to their homes when there was no scientific data to support this," he complained to the New York Daily News over the weekend.

EPA spokeswoman Lisa Harrison defended the White House, telling the News, "We believe that this inspector general's report is flawed on a number of fronts, namely that it did not take into account the unprecedented nature of the World Trade Center attack and the chaotic nature of the aftermath."

Harrison explained that contrary to the impression left by the report, her agency clearly warned Ground Zero workers and people with respiratory problems to take precautions.

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Sen. Hillary Clinton

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