Guy Benson:
Chuck Todd: C’mon, Every Benghazi Question Has Already Been Answered
NBC’s Chief White House Correspondent and MSNBC anchor Chuck Todd doesn’t see any rationale for the formation of a select committee on Benghazi. The inquiry is pointless, Todd asserts, because “all” questions* pertaining to the 2012 terrorist attacks have already been asked and answered:
“I’ll hear from Republicans who will say, ‘but there are unanswered questions.’ Well no, all the questions have been answered. There’s just some people who don’t like the answers — that wishes [sic] the answers were somehow more conspiratorial.”
Yes, there have been a number of investigations into the deadly raid, including revelatory House hearings, a Senate report, and a State Department-mandated review. The House proceedings answered some questions, but raised others. The Senate Intelligence panel’s report concluded that the attacks were preventable, and rebuked the Obama administration for “unnecessarily hamper[ing] the committee’s review.” The State Department’s “Accountability Review Board” declined to interview key players, including Secretary Clinton. None of the Benghazi survivors have testified publicly. Furthermore, new information and perspectives have come to light within the last few weeks. A court-ordered document release turned up a relevant, previously-withheld email that further undermines the White House’s official version of events regarding their post-attack talking points, and an Air Force General who was on duty at AFRICOM that night said the military never received a request for help from the State Department during the eight-hour ordeal. He went on to suggest that the US government should have attempted a rescue mission, which other military officers have testified wouldn’t have been logistically feasible. A majority of the House of Representatives — including a handful of Democrats — clearly believes that unanswered questions remain. A large majority of the American public is skeptical of the White House’s veracity and supports keeping the investigation open and ongoing. Two former top CIA officials have endorsed the proceedings. Most Beltway Democrats, and apparently Chuck Todd, dissent. Todd is a journalist. It’s therefore a bit jarring to hear him declare that “all” questions pertaining to a controversial matter have been answered, thus intimating that the issue is settled — particularly after previously-unseen evidence has just recently emerged.
Benson lists ten question he wants answered. I have more than that, and each one has lots of follow-ups. There are at least seven eight scandals worthy of further inquiry.
Yes, some of those questions have been “answered.” But not all those answers were responsive, and the multi-committee format, time limitations, lack of sworn testimony, simultaneous witnesses and ping-ponging interviewers ensured that “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth” was not revealed.
The Benghazi special committee is an investigation, not a trial. I used to be an investigator. I also used to do depositions and cross-examinations. Eliciting all the information you need can be problematic even with cooperative witnesses.
Some might say “What difference does it make?” If you don’t know the answer to that question you aren’t worthy of holding office OR working as a journalist.
The Crawdad Hole 
there must be a lot of information that has yet to be made public on Benghazi. the way the dems are in a panic it must be pretty powerful stuff
Secrecy always breeds speculation. It’s like Obama’s school records. We’ve had presidents whose grades weren’t very good, and they were still elected and served. So there must something more, right? We’ve had embassies attacked before. No one suggested the president was derelict in his duties then. So what else is there to this event? It wasn’t the burglary. It was the cover-up. It’s sad really. The American people forgive so much so easily, but not being lied to. “You like your policy. You can keep your policy” upsets more people than having their premiums raised.
And the professional malpractice of the Ojournolistas adds fuel to those fires of frustration.
That they continue to deny it makes it a criminal conspiracy, IMO. Do we need to rethink the whole “Freedom of the Press” thing?
Secrecy is the fertile soil where conspiracy theories grow.
My tentative morning post will be titled “Barack Obama, Arab Spring and the Myth of the Moderate Muslim.”
If that doesn’t get a fatwa issued for my head, nothing will.
…preparing a compound.
The escape route is set. When the person at the train station says: “In the spring, the song of the sparrow is sweet.” Your response should be: “What are you, a fucking spy?”
iwhen the engineer gives two to go make sure you are already on the steps of the train. running trying to jump on a train is bad for your health
Get in line behind Sean Hannity. Almost every day on the radio, he has another woman who has suffered under Sharia.
if you do so. there is a lady on Hannity talking about sharia law. maybe the video will be available. all i can say as a female sharia law sucks
I don’t watch the TV lap dogs, but I find it creepy and incredible that Obama toady Chuck Todd is NBC’s chief White House correspondent.
Informed Comment:
There is more at the link.
The WH and state department have consistently called it a diplomatic mission so I’m not so sure the whole consul line of questioning is worthwhile. It’s the media that has called it a consulate.
As for the whole covert operation we will never know the truth about that. I’m sure there are those on both sides of the aisle that did know all about it so they have a mutual interest in not letting any probe go too far.
I think the fact that it was most likely a covert operation is why Clinton didn’t want to allocate her resources for security. She probably felt like that should come out of the CIA budget. In other words if the whole truth came out you’d probably find at the root of the security issue was a bureaucratic pissing contest.
The lack of security is only one issue. If it was a covert operation we have a right to know what our government was up to.
FYI: I am generally opposed to covert operations. They are inherently anti-democratic and are prone to abuse.
If the Congressional “Gang of Eight” wasn’t notified by a Presidential Finding, then anti-democratic becomes criminal behavior, which shouldn’t worry Obama/Holder.
I’m old enough to remember the Church committee and the “Secret” War in Laos.
I say “Secret” because the North Vietnamese knew we were there. So did the Laotians, the Chinese, the USSR and most of the free world.
It was only kept a secret from the American people.
I’m generally opposed to covert operations too, but sometimes they have their place.
I agree the lack of security is only one issue, there are several you came up with 8 remember. I’m still not convinced that we couldn’t have gotten help there, in fact I really think we could have. I base that on knowledge of what airplanes we know were about 400 miles away. I know the official line is we just couldn’t get ‘er done, we didn’t have a tanker, blah, blah. Funny hurricane hunters fly in C-130s and they can stay aloft in a hurricane for 11 hours. We had more assets than that nearby too.
There were a lot of possibilities but what each and every single one of them lacked was a CIC willing to deploy them. Even if what Panetta and some others have said is true that we just couldn’t have made it, the fact that we didn’t at least try to me is the most damning thing of all.
It seems more and more clear that is what was going on. It will be telling if the new committee doesn’t try to dig into that side of things. If not, then is it indeed just a political show? I’d say so. The questions we’re all asking, just assuming normal operations, should still be answered. But if this were a CIA operation, then that needs to be uncovered. And if congress wasn’t in on it in any capacity, there needs to be serious repercussions. Either we have co-equal branches of government or we have a central executive power, and only pretending to be a democratic republic. If congress doesn’t want to uncover that, then they know that and are part of the kabuki theater.
I recently read an article in the guardian or telegraph, one of the UK papers that was written by a supposed intelligence informant. The crux of the article was that there was indeed a covert op in Benghazi that was basically a gun running op into Syria through Turkey. According to the article the op was technically being run by MI6 even though it was really being run by the CIA. There is supposedly a loophole in the law regarding covert operations where the CIA can cooperate, assist and participate in foreign run covert operations without getting congressional approval. The purpose of that loophole I’m sure is because foreign intelligence agencies don’t want our congress knowing all their business.
Anyway according to this informant the operation was under the umbrella of MI6 in order to give cover to the Obama administration and the CIA. The whole thing ran into problems when the Brits pulled out because of the violence. It was at that point in July or August, again according to this article, that the administration ran it by the leadership in the house and senate as well as select intelligence committee members.
I’ll hunt around tomorrow and see if I can find that article and post a link here. It sounded plausible, but you never really know the veracity of an anonymous source like that.
The author is Seymour Hersh and it was in the London Review of Books.
http://www.lrb.co.uk/v36/n08/seymour-m-hersh/the-red-line-and-the-rat-line
OK well I had the UK part correct, LOL!
http://weaselzippers.us/186150-soros-gave-6-1-million-to-liberal-groups-whose-pressure-led-irs-to-target-conservative-nonprofits/
it’s ok he is not one of the Koch brothers
http://spectator.org/articles/59039/still-digging-benghazi
so good questions and some things to think about on the Benghazi committee
FUCK FUCK DOUBLE FUCK
No more twitter for me. My full name right there. Votermom told me but I thought it was just my first name. NO first and last.
Just change it on your profile – it will change the previous tweets too (as long as it wasn’t screen capped by anyone)
the southern California wildfires are really getting bad. lot of acreage and property burned. Even Camp Pendleton has wild fires burning
http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/15/us/san-diego-wildfire/index.html
Helen did you ever get to the bottom of your realtor issue? I hope you were able to find out about the offer and that it was a good one.
Are you relocating somewhere or are you just downsizing?
I guess she got the message that I had better see the offer. It should arrive tomorrow. I talked to my youngest daughter who is a real estate agent in NJ. she said the 2nd agent had no right to say the price was too high that agents were not showing it. She reminded me that two people had looked at the house, one came back for a second look and the only reason he did not make an offer was he is an investor and wanted a cheaper house so he could rent it. the 2nd people that came are the ones making the offer. So I am in the right price range for people who want to live in the house. the 2nd couple loved it and were very impressed on what I had done with the house.
so my temper has calmed down.
I had to laugh today when I called the 2nd realtor, her phone message is if you are calling on a monday or tuesday do not call before noon. awesome work ethic
Well now Helen some people need their beauty rest……snicker!
I hope the 2nd couple makes a good offer!
so do I. my kids want me to move to Florida Gulf coast
Florida? You’ll be my neighbor…..sort of I’m not on the gulf coast. The gulf is absolutely beautiful though! I used to spend my summers near the panhandle, oh the memories I have of Ft. Walton and Panama City.
Do be careful deciding on an area, the gulf coast can be a bit of a hurricane magnet. However, I’ve always said if you can’t get out of the way of a hurricane with all the warnings then there is something wrong with you.
PS If you need to run from a hurricane you can come visit me. I’m in the very NE corner of Florida (Amelia Island) and the way the coast curves we rarely get storms…..last one was 1964….knock on wood.
The Obama media is being willfully ignorant about Benghazi. We do know everything about how the four Americans were killed in that building. We have a good idea who did it. What we need to know about Benghazi is what DID NOT happen in Benghazi. For example,
-Where were the rapid response forces we should have available in the 8 hours the siege lasted?
-Where was the president during that night? What was the proportion of fund raising to actually knowing what the hell was going on?
-Why was there no extra security in a makeshift embassy that wasn’t even the real embassy?
-What was the CIA security protecting other than American lives?
-Who was the first person in the inner circle to hear about a YouTube video and make it a priority in the press?
http://www.ijreview.com/2014/05/138572-17-yr-old-girl-says-politicians-job-isnt-rocket-science-just-unseated-incumbent-legislator/
this young lady gives me hope for the future. whether she wins or not she gives the politicians a message they really should listen to. I would vote for her in a heartbeat
http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/facts-that-will-teach-you-a-damn-thing-for-once-in-your-l?bffb
since I believe you are never too old to learn something, I thought I would share this
Bill Whittle: Obama is Gaslighting You!:
you know I have to steal this