It would appear that figuring out what "al-Qaida" really is, is going to play a large part in the ongoing political debate in this country. Here's what I mean:Everyone knows that al-Qaida -- meaning the group headed by Osama bin Laden that was headquartered in Afghanistan -- was behind the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

Recently there was a report from U.S. intelligence agencies that said that "al-Qaida" had reorganized and retooled itself since the invasion of Afghanistan such that it was almost back to its pre-Sept. 11 strength.

This led the Associated Press, , in one story about the report, to observe:

"The findings could bolster the president's hand at a moment when support on Capitol Hill for the war is eroding and the administration is struggling to defend its decision for a military buildup in Iraq."

This is because of quotations like this from Tony Snow, the White House press secretary, in the same AP story:

"The number one enemy in Iraq is al-Qaida. Al-Qaida continues to be the chief organizer of mayhem within Iraq, the chief organization for killing innocent Iraqis." 

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