Washington's in a Panic, Better Wait Til the President Finishes His Bike Ride to Tell Him

While jet fighters scrambled, people ran out of the Capitol, and Vice President Dick Cheney was whisked to a secure location -- President Bush pedaled calmly along a rural Maryland bike trail.

The terror threat alert at the White House shot up to red -- the highest. The Capitol to orange -- the second highest.

But the President kept riding his bicycle, never issuing an order, never taking a single action.

Don't blame the President. His handlers never told him radar had picked up an incoming plane violating the no fly zone over Washington, DC. They never told him what was going on until the whole incident was over.

It turned out to be no threat. The two people on board were using old charts and won't be charged with anything.

But you'd think if all of official Washington was hunkering for cover, someone would have told the President. Or, you might think, someone should be looking for a new job this morning. (CBS)