White House homeland security adviser Frances Townsend has suggested that the Bush administration would consider direct assaults on Pakistan in an effort to disrupt al-Qaeda hideouts. Townsend appeared on Fox News Sunday and was asked why the U.S. isn’t sending special operations forces and pilotless drones into Pakistan. Townsend said no options are off the table.

Frances Townsend: “President Musharraf has got over 80,000 Pakistani military troops in the FATA, and working with us, they’ve sustained hundreds of casualties in this fight. We’re working with them, but the president’s been clear: Job number one is to protect the American people, and there are no options that are off the table.”

Frances Townsend’s comment came as the U.S. director of national intelligence, Mike McConnell, admitted that he believed Osama bin Laden was living in the tribal region of Pakistan.