White House to release preliminary findings on airline security investigation tomorrow

By Michael A. Fletcher
The White House will release an unclassified version of the preliminary report on the failed Christmas Day attack of a Detroit-bound airliner on Thursday, press secretary Robert Gibbs said.

The report, compiled by counterterrorism adviser John Brennan, details how the government's intelligence and airline security apparatus failed to head off the attempted bombing.

Obama told his national security team that it had "screwed up" because spy agencies had gathered sufficient information to stop the attack before Nigerian national Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to bomb the plane, but failed to piece it together. The attempt was foiled when explosives Abdulmutallab had sown in his underwear failed to detonate, and alert passengers were able to subdue him.

"This will be very comprehensive," Gibbs said of the review.

After the review, Gibbs said, Obama would make another statement about the ongoing investigation and government efforts to close the gaps in the nation's security net.