Federal officials on Tuesday did an about-face on the latest terrorist threat. The FBI said following an investigation, a threat of possible terrorist attacks against bridges in California and other Western states is not credible.

Last week the FBI issued a warning to law enforcement agencies, based in their words on “uncorroborated information indicating the possibility of additional terrorist attacks targeting suspension bridges."
The news sent shock waves through several states, including California, where Gov. Gray Davis issued an order tightening security at the biggest spans in the state, including San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. The news also caused officials in several other states, even outside the West, to implement their own security measures.
Despite the news, officials in charge of the Golden Gate Bridge and others in the state said they would keep the stepped-up security.
Speaking to reporters at the Bay Bridge, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said the additional security was needed “even if the sources turned out to be bogus.”
The FBI has offered no details as to why this latest threat has been dismissed.
Meantime Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller, who have taken some heat over what some say are vague terrorist warnings, defended the decision to issue the alert last week over bridge warnings.
Mueller said during a press conference Tuesday that the government wants to send a strong signal to terrorists that the country is focused and prepared to deal with any attacks on the U.S.