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Congresswoman: Obama’s ‘Benghazi-Gate’ Is ‘Worse Than Watergate’

Oct. 1, 2012 3:34pm Mytheos Holt

Today on Fox News, Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) laid rhetorical siege to the Obama administration’s response to the attack on a Libyan embassy that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens. Blackburn left no stone unturned in her indictment, claiming that the administration had bungled not just the aftermath of the attack, but the lead up to it as well.

“I think that [Susan Rice] should resign,” Blackburn said. “We have dozens of individuals that were injured and four that lost their lives…This is a terrorist attack. This is an act of war.”

But Blackburn wasn’t finished. “Benghazi-gate is the right kind of term for this,” she said. “I think this is very, very serious. Probably more serious than Watergate.”

Blackburn alluded to a piece by Eli Lake of the Daily Beast as justification for her brutal assessment of the administration’s behavior. However, the Lake piece is arguably more damning than even Blackburn’s jaundiced assessment of the situation. Some highlights follow:

It’s unclear why the talking points said the attacks were spontaneous and why they didn’t mention the possibility of al Qaeda involvement, given the content of the intercepts and the organizations the speakers were affiliated with. One U.S. intelligence officer said the widely distributed assessment was an example of “cherry picking,” or choosing one piece of intelligence and ignoring other pieces, to support a preferred thesis.

“Even if you push out that one piece of intelligence,” said this intelligence officer, “it is still in the context of a conversation between a group with an affinity to al Qaeda and a manager of an al-Qaeda affiliate. Why were we only hearing about how the attack was inspired and not about that?”[...]

Politically, a coordinated Qaeda attack on the anniversary of 9/11 undermines a theme of President Obama’s reelection campaign that the killing of Osama bin Laden has diminished the threat from the group responsible for 9/11. Mary Habeck, who served on the National Security Council as an expert on al Qaeda in 2008 and 2009 said, “There is a debate occurring in the government about the status of al Qaeda. Is it a threat or not? Is the death of bin Laden the end of the group as a threat to the United States or is it not?”

Last week, The Daily Beast wrote about a Library of Congress report published in August and commissioned by an interagency research organization examining counterterrorism policy that said al Qaeda’s senior leadership “in Pakistan dispatched trusted senior operatives as emissaries and leaders who could supervise building a network. Al-Qaeda has established a core network in Libya, but it remains clandestine and refrains from using the al-Qaeda name.” The report also said Ansar al-Sharia has “increasingly embodied al-Qaeda’s presence in Libya.”

This type of indictment of a sitting president’s seeming strong suit this close to the election should be cause for concern in the White House. Certainly, Lake quotes his fair share of administration officials claiming that the intelligence is not “cherry picked” and that the “spontaneous” interpretation is still viable. However, when squared against the facts he uncovers, these responses may strike some readers as just so much spin.

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Comments (45)

brotherwil
Posted on October 2, 2012 at 1:41am
is obama really that incompetent or is he simply a ringer for the muslim brotherhood? are those behind The foreign policy of this administration absolutely clueless, or stupendously complicit?…either way, america loses..is obama’s anti-colonialism the centerpiece of his desire for america? are we, in his eyes, getting our just deserts? is obama’s militant socialism really the choice of much of america?? does he want to be king of the world?? or has he, in his colossal arrogance, already assumed that position? is this president absolutely incompetent or nefariously complicit?? no doubt Mr. Beck is correct in his assumption of one way out…PRAYER….like the humble thief on the cross…acknowledge Christ’s lordship and ask for mercy. “Lord, remember us.”

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- sarcoq
  Posted on October 2, 2012 at 11:16am
  According to John Bolton, Obama not only botched the 3AM call, but he didn’t even hear the phone ringing.
  
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- G-WHIZ
  Posted on October 2, 2012 at 11:36am
  He the King-O’ wants to be King of : The New World Order!!
  
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SlushPuppyKing
Posted on October 2, 2012 at 1:30am
Why is everyone saying Susan Rice needs to step down but the media isn’t suggesting Obama stepping down? I don’t get it.

And why did she say she talk to so many woman that said “Really, could they not figure out this was a terrorist attack?” I mean….is she insinuating women are so dumb even they could figure it out? LOL

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- VigilantGuardShark
  Posted on October 2, 2012 at 2:17pm
  Susan Rice and Hillary Clinton need to step down for this incredible display of incompetence and a breach of their Oath to Protect the US of A.
  
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Talafofotom2
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 9:58pm
The whole affair is way worse than planting a bug in an office @ the watergate. This Benghazi deal shows the weakness and total lack of any planning on the part of Shillary and the Obama need for attention via the MSM @ the expense of Obama’s own people If I were in the Foreign service I’d resign before something happened.-In order to use mortars to any effect the place was scoped out probably paced out for proper charging ect then when the time was right away they went.All the admin had to do was get 4 people away from the consular building for a few days then none of this would’ve happened at least not on 9/11 and thebuilding in question wasn’t up to std for our staff to use at all so WTH?But the Obama media is still hyping up the demo about the Mohammed movie ?? They will never admit anything.they are never wrong.-Seems as though they are using the whole event as a what? what do we gain from the situation it’s a total screw up for the Obama people and Americans in general.

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Deepwater
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 9:45pm
I am proud that Marsha Blackburn is my Congressionnal representative here in TN, and she is not afraid to tell it like it is! After the Gibson Guitar plant in Nashville was raided by armed government agents who seized private property and sent the employees home, she invvited Gibson CEO Henry Juszkiewicz to sit with her at Obama’s jobs speach (such irony). His presence at that speech spoke volumes, and I hope it did not go unoticed by the president and his minions…

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honkytonkman
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 9:01pm
and furthermore, Barry’s allowing the muslim brotherhood to have access to the White house is clearly giving aid and comfort to the enemy. Brothers and sisters, the last time I checked that was treason.

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mikenleeds
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 8:34pm
i love the way southern people speak straight forward and brutally honest … she s spot on too

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Case_Logic
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 7:53pm
Obama as good as pulled the trigger and the progressive politicians and liberal media provided cover.

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audiemurphy
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 7:41pm
The one question NOBODY is asking is why was he there with two former seals working for the state dept. who were trying to recover weapons that were given to to the enemy to help oust Ghadafi .
Ask that and watch it all fall apart!

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- Mattomatic2
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 7:57pm
  Its because they weren’t marines, or seals… The were CIA operatives. This is already know fact. They were on a mission to collect weapons from a “war-torn” nation. Weapons that Steven’s himself may have sold them himself.
  
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Eblaze44
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 6:21pm
OH, and there is NO Benghazi gate – NO ONE CARES that counts

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Eblaze44
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 6:20pm
IF this were a congresswoman with a D beside her name – this would be worth reading – otherwise – a pointless demonstration of preaching to the choir.

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justangry
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 5:38pm
Oh please. Most of the things Obama has done are worse than Watergate. The only problem is the GOP isn’t taking any of the credit for this. Everyone that voted to bomb all those women and children to protect them are responsible for the ambassador’s death. Point the fingers at one another in this petty partisan BS is probably one of the most disgusting things the GOP have done.

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Cavallo
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 5:23pm
It’s all Bush’s fault.. or Global Warming.. I mean Climate Change..

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- justangry
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 6:00pm
  It’s every interventionist’s fault. What we did in Libya was wrong, and we should expect retaliation from every Libyan that had a bomb kill or wound their friends or family. Why is the concept so hard for people to grasp? People don’t like us bombing them.
  
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- G-WHIZ
  Posted on October 2, 2012 at 11:42am
  WETHEPEOPLE DID not DO THE “INCIDENT”…our OUT-OF-CONTROL-FACIAST-GOVERNMENT DID IT!!
  
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FieldJudge
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:52pm
Yeah… Where is Bob Woodward, Pulitzer Prize investigative reporter? Where is his daily front page reporting on BO and his administration’s growing treasure trove of scandals?
Or was Watergate – 40 years ago it for you buddy?

For those of you who aren’t familiar:
Bob Woodward was a reporter for the Washington Post when he was tipped to a burglary at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex. Woodward, with Carl Bernstein, eventually connected the break-in to the highest levels of the Nixon administration. The Post was awarded the 1973 Pulitzer Prize, and Woodward and Berstein became synonymous with investigative journalism. His newly released book Woodward’s book “The Price of Politics” might serve, in the words of one columnist, as “alarming news” for Democrats and a “political gift” for Republicans. The book is getting luke-warm reviews.

Hey, Bob! How about growing a pair and get to work reporting on the rich scandals and covered-ups by BO and his gang before the 2012 US elections. Or don’t you ‘do’ Leftist Democrats… Sad.

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- Chromo200
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 5:42pm
  Great point …. It is just that Woodward is in the tank for Obama and the Democrats. Woodward hasn’t done anything big since Watergate. Remember he works for the Post.
  
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kryptonite
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:39pm
Why won’t the conservative media report on the highly classified info lost in the Benghazi Consulate raid? We are now more vulnerable than ever. Any operatives and informants we had in that red zone are gone. Our missions, strategies and tactics have also been compromised.

I’m d@mn sick of that TRAITOR getting away with his evil deeds and constant lying. Eff the polls and narratives the state-control media throws at us daily. Before communication systems were modernized, the commies would use loudspeakers to brainwash the populace. Now we have to listen to the Regime apparatchiks spewing their filthy lies 24/7 on TV. They need to be made totally irrelevant.

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LeadNotFollow
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:28pm
…
Barack Hussein (Barry Soetoro) Obama, is the worst President in history, period.

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- 2MINUTESTOMIDNIGHT
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:56pm
  Everything is relative. If you are an anti-American, anti-colonialist POS with the single intent of destroying the United States and reducing our once great nation to the level of a Ugandan (or Kenyan) dirt village, then BHO is the greatest president in history.
  
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woodyee
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:17pm
“When you know that there were other areas that were under attack in Libya…” – Blackburn

WOW!! Talk about the proverbial can of worms! What did Gaybama and the Gayministration know and when did they know it? what are they keeping from us, “When you know that there were other areas that were under attack in Libya…”?

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Monica2
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:10pm
Watergate was exposed by a professional media, Benghazigate is being covered up by an unprofessional group of slimey unprofessional urnalists.

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- Eric_The_Red_State
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:27pm
  Amen to that. HONEST JOURNALISM is DEAD
  
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- Seymour
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:56pm
  Eric and Monica, I’m with you on this one. I think at this point the MSM is praying to their own personal God that Barack wins this election to reestablish some semblance of bona fides from the overt miscommunication in 2008 which they won’t be able to accomplish as evidenced in the 2010 mid-terms. I think today folks are even more irritated than in 2010, how could they not? I’ve gotta a feeling the only true business model’s that will implode and a do over will be the MSM telecasts and print, Hollywood, Unions and education, et al. I’ve been around long enough to know the indicators and I’ve really never felt them this strong. On November 6th you’re going to see lines of voters never recorded before in modern politics that will be pulling that lever for President Romney. The left is a minority but bang the pans like they were the majority. Just keep that in mind……
  
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cykonas
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:08pm
The fact that there was intelligence available that was apparently ignored really doesn’t make any difference to me. Why? Given the significance of the date and the extremely volatile political conditions that exist throughout the ME and North Africa we should have had every embassy, consulate, and mission on a state of high alert and locked down or evacuated for at least a week before 9/11/12. And they should have remained at that level of alert until it was absolutely determined that it was safe to stand down.

There is absolutely no excuse for this lapse in security. None. Intel or not. This administration is controlled by rank amateurs who are too arrogant to let the career professionals do what they know is right. And that amateurism is costing U.S. lives. Not just in Benghazi, but in Afghanistan as well.

My prayers are with the families of the murdered, and with those injured in these terrorist attacks. Let’s pray that our Congressional “leaders” have the courage to pursue this atrocity to its’ logical and factual end. And if the findings show that there were indeed lies and coverups then let’s pray that they invoke the prescribed Constitutional, or other legal, remedies. Peace.

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pennies
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:08pm
Treason, from Rice on up the flag pole.

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alamb
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:01pm
Romney is going to spank Obama with Benghazigate!

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- RepubliCorp
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:23pm
  & fast and furious …..I hope
  
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- Cavallo
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 5:01pm
  I wish. However, the American Pravda will not allow this story to get much more traction than it already has received. Any minor slip of the tongue by Romney will be used to shove this to the back pages (if any page at all), and get the ADHD public to forget and move on to the next Romney scandal, even if they have to make a scandal up (which they have been trying to do for months).
  
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progressiveslayer
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 3:54pm
Barry sacrificed the ambassador to cover up what he was really doing in Libya because dead men tell no tales. The Marxist mulatto POS would put anyone on his kill list if it improved his odds of retaining power. Dick Nixon was forced to resign for a hell of a lot less than what this Marxist regime has done.

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- Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:10pm
  Progressive – I have wondered if the ambassador was sacrificed for Obama’s plans for a assault on free speech given the ‘video’ and the UN speeches on ‘anti-Islam defamation protection needed’ by so many other world leaders.
  
  This is worse than Watergate – it’s outright murder and treason. Yet Obama still is in office, he needs to go.
  
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- woodyee
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:18pm
  Carolina, puta mala…
  
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- OohNachos
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:18pm
  ProgressiveSlayer: “Barry sacrificed the ambassador to cover up what he was really doing in Libya because dead men tell no tales.”
  
  I was thinking the same thing. The whole thing stinks. The attackers seemed to know exactly where and when to find the ambassador away from his security. I don’t know how high up the chain this stink reaches, but it really does seem that the enemy had some inside help here, doesn’t it?
  
  I guess I should give our side the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it was a Libyan informant that leaked some info. You know, somebody that we thought was on our side — a la Afghani trainees killing their US trainers.
  
  I don’t think there is anything off the table when it comes to getting the current administration reelected, though. If they thought that Ambassador Stevens was a loose end that could threaten their goals, they’d cut him off for sure.
  
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- kryptonite
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:59pm
  I keep hearing that crazy conspiracy theory. Stevens helped the revolutionaries depose and kill Kaddafi; he was specifically sent by Hussein to accomplish that mission. He was liberal from head to toe.
  
  Hussein killed two of al-Qaeda’s top men, one of which happened to be Libyan. It was the eleventh anniversary of 9/11. Why do you keep on donning your tin-foil hats in favor of Obama? He was played and rational people know it. Al-Qaeda murdered four Americans and stole all of his administration’s intel. The last thing Hussein wanted this close to the election was people demanding answers and questioning the effectiveness of his foreign policy.
  
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mcsledge
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 3:52pm
And Obama has the audacity to challenge Romney on foreign policy experience? Who needs enemies when America’s own worst enemy resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

If you haven’t been following the Fast and Furious case, Kevin O’Reilly (former administration correspondent with the ATF) was shipped out to Iraq to fill a role already filled by someone else so that he could not testify against Holder and possibly even Obama on what they knew about Fast and Furious. I hate to say it, but it will be unlikely that Kevin ever makes it home alive.

Cover ups create casualties (normally in the form of suicides and terrorist attacks).

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2MINUTESTOMIDNIGHT
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 3:45pm
Reality check:
1. No one in congress has the go-nads to do anything to the POS BHO.
2. No one voting for the POS BHO cares what he does or doesn’t do as long as they receive their welfare check and free telephone.

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- progressiveslayer
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 3:56pm
  Agreed. 1 and 2 are candyasses and a disgrace to this country.
  
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- 13th Imam
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:03pm
  Enlighten Me
  What exactly should they do?
  PS. I am on your side
  
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- michael48
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:07pm
  well the “jive@zz LUSH” wanted class warfare..he’s got it…”dem-wits need not apply”…with this twits idea of an economy…I don’t have the time , money nor inclination to teach “work ethic”..hope the lib’s just leave thier chairman ocommie stickers on thier tri-cycles…save me some time….
  
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- HumbleCitizen
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:22pm
  Some people will vote for Obama no matter what, even if he were to be caught murdering a child with his own hands while smoking a blunt and getting a “Monica Lewinsky” from a dog….this includes some people in my family. I can not understand such blindness.
  
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- 2MINUTESTOMIDNIGHT
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 4:51pm
  13th: The house could certainly draw up the articles of impeachment as a start. With the current make-up of the Senate, a trial would likely not be successful, but at least compile the articles in the House and show this POS that he can’t get away with absolutely anything and everything. Its nice a few congressman can show up on cable news and talk the talk, but lets see them walk the walk.
  
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- kryptonite
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 5:51pm
  2MINUTESTOMIDNIGHT
  No friend. The state media would have a field day portraying the Republican-controlled House as haters, racists and dividers. Romney would be DOA.
  
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