State Department: We Never Linked Libya Attack to Anti-Muslim Video
A pair of boots lies on the ground at the US consulate compound in Benghazi on September 13, 2012, following an attack on the building late on September 11 in which the US ambassador to Libya and three other US nationals were killed. Libya said it has made arrests and opened a probe into the attack, amid speculation that Al-Qaeda rather than a frenzied mob was to blame. (Credit: AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (TheBlaze/AP) — The State Department said Tuesday it never concluded that the consulate attack in Libya stemmed from protests over an American-made video ridiculing Islam, raising further questions about why the Obama administration used that explanation for more than a week after assailants killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans.
The revelation came as new documents suggested internal disagreement over appropriate levels of security before the attack, which occurred on the 11th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the U.S.
Briefing reporters ahead of a hotly anticipated congressional hearing Wednesday, State Department officials provided their most detailed rundown of how a peaceful day in Benghazi devolved into a sustained attack that involved multiple groups of men armed with weapons such as machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars over an expanse of more than a mile.
But asked about the administration’s initial – and since retracted – explanation linking the violence to protests over an anti-Muslim video circulating on the Internet, one official said, “That was not our conclusion.” He called it a question for “others” to answer, without specifying. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter, and provided no evidence that might suggest a case of spontaneous violence or angry protests that went too far.
In another major development, ABC News reported Tuesday that officials now say there were no protests outside the U.S. Consulate in Libya — a glaring contradiction in the White House’s initial story. Watch ABC’s report below:
The attack has become a major issue in the presidential campaign, featuring prominently in Republican candidate Mitt Romney’s latest foreign policy address on Monday. He called it an example of President Barack Obama’s weakness in foreign policy matters, noting: “As the administration has finally conceded, these attacks were the deliberate work of terrorists.”
The administration counters that it has provided its best intelligence on the attack, and that it refined its explanation as more information came to light. But five days after the attack, Obama’s ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, gave a series of interviews saying the administration believed the violence was unplanned and that extremists with heavier weapons “hijacked” the protest and turned it into an outright attack.
She has since denied trying to mislead Congress, and a concurrent CIA memo that was obtained by The Associated Press cited intelligence suggesting the demonstrations in Benghazi “were spontaneously inspired by the protests at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo” and “evolved into a direct assault” on the diplomatic posts by “extremists.”
Alongside defining the nature of the Benghazi attack, Congress is looking into whether adequate security was in place.
According to an email obtained Tuesday by the AP, the top State Department security official in Libya told a congressional investigator that he had argued unsuccessfully for more security in the weeks before Ambassador Chris Stevens, a State Department computer specialist and two former Navy SEALs were killed. But department officials instead wanted to “normalize operations and reduce security resources,” he wrote.
Eric Nordstrom, who was the regional security officer in Libya, also referenced a State Department document detailing 230 security incidents in Libya between June 2011 and July 2012 that demonstrated the danger there to Americans.
Nordstrom is among the witnesses set to testify Wednesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. According to the panel’s chairman, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and the head of a subcommittee, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, the State Department refused repeated requests to provide more security for U.S. diplomats in Libya.
“You will note that there were a number of incidents that targeted diplomatic missions and underscored the GoL’s (government of Libya) inability to secure and protect diplomatic missions,” Nordstrom’s email stated.
“This was a significant part of (the diplomatic) post’s and my argument for maintaining continued DS (diplomatic security) and DOD (Department of Defense) security assets into Sept/Oct. 2012; the GoL was overwhelmed and could not guarantee our protection.
“Sadly, that point was reaffirmed on Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi,” he added.
Nordstrom said the incidents demonstrated that security in Libya was fragile and could degrade quickly. He added that Libya was “certainly not an environment where (the diplomatic) post would be directed to `normalize’ operations and reduce security resources in accordance with an artificial time table.”
Nordstrom also said diplomats in Libya were told not to request an extension of a 16-member special operations military team that left in August, according to an official of the Oversight panel. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and thus spoke only on the condition of anonymity.
The State Department has said it never received a request to extend the military team beyond August, and added that its members were replaced with a security team that had the same skills.
Democrats on the Oversight committee were sharply critical of Issa, the chairman, calling his investigation “extremely partisan.”
“The chairman and his staff failed to consult with Democratic members prior to issuing public letters with unverified allegations, concealed witnesses and refused to make one hearing witness available to Democratic staff, withheld documents obtained by the committee during the investigation, and effectively excluded Democratic committee members from joining a poorly-planned congressional delegation to Libya,” a Democratic memo said.
It said in the previous two years, House Republicans voted to cut the Obama administration’s requests for embassy security by some $459 million.
The Democratic memo said Nordstrom told committee investigators that he sent two cables to State Department headquarters in March and July 2012 requesting additional diplomatic security agents for Benghazi, but that he received no responses.
He stated that Charlene Lamb, the deputy assistant secretary for international programs, wanted to keep the number of U.S. security personnel in Benghazi artificially low and that Lamb believed the Benghazi facilities did not need any diplomatic security special agents because there was a residential safe haven to fall back to in an emergency.
Issa had a phone conversation Monday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton about the committee’s investigation.
The FBI is still investigating the attack. Clinton also has named a State Department review panel to look into the security arrangements in Libya.
Front page image via STR/AFP/GettyImages.
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Comments (106)
BrotherWill
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 10:00pmOk I’m confused. Then why does this video show Secretary of State Hillary Clinton saying the protests were because of the video?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XusUKm-OLWQ
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Gold Coin & Economic News
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 11:17pmCan you say doublespeak? Romney has all kinds of things to tear Obama apart on the next debate now. I think we all know what Obama will be doing in his next job:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=120314444786376
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Junter
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 12:56amThese aren’t the droids you’re looking for…
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menticide
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 3:21amI hate to sound all conspiratorial here, but I’m beginning to wonder if the video wasn’t actually made by the State Department. I mean seriously, how would they even have known of the existence of this no-budget piece of crap? Plus, this Nakoula Basseley Nakoula guy seems to have a ton of aliases, and every photo I’ve seen of him looks like he’s trying to pull off some Elephant Man impersonation…
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damon_k
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 5:06amThis adminsitration still doesn’t understand that the left in this country no longer controls the flow of news and information like they did pre-Limbaugh. Now there is the internet, FoxNews, talk radio and a host of other sources for information. Do they think just because they say something it makes it true, what arrogance. Read more insights at: http://smallcraftadvisorychronicles.blogspot.com/
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menticide
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 6:13amDamon-
I checked out your blog, I’m glad to see you’re following the whole Stevens weapons gathering mission story. I started mentioning this a few weeks ago and I was practically accused of spreading lies…
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SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 6:48amBut I thought it was the video? That’s what they told me. How can this be? They lied? Who do I believe now? Beck said it wasn’t the video” did he lie?
Is it ok to lie to the American people? Do you defendobamas right to lie? Does anyone hold him accountable? Where are our trolls and ogres to explain this to me? I need their help.
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BSdetector
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 8:56amI love the smell of Treason in the morning. Maybe I should start working for Obama?
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poorrichard09
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 9:06amLooks like The Big Lie (about the film) isn’t working-so now they’re lying about that?
What are they covering up?
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BreeZee
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 9:46amFrom the huff puff post
Hillary Clinton: Anti-Islam Video ‘Disgusting And Reprehensible’
By BRADLEY KLAPPER 09/13/12 10:37 AM ET EDT
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is sharpening her criticism of an anti-Islam video that provoked protests in the Arab world.
Clinton says the film is “disgusting and reprehensible.” She calls it a cynical attempt to offend people for their religious beliefs.
But Clinton says the U.S. would never stop Americans from expressing their views, no matter how distasteful. And she says the film is no justification for violence or attacks on U.S. diplomatic facilities and personnel.
Clinton said Thursday the U.S. is monitoring protests in Yemen and elsewhere. She’s urging countries to take steps to prevent protests escalating into violence.
______________________________________
CBS News
AP/ September 20, 2012, 2:30 PM
Anti-film ads in Pakistan feature Obama, Clinton
Parts of the article
(AP) ISLAMABAD – Marked by the U.S. Embassy seal, advertisements condemning an anti-Islam video appeared on Pakistani television on Thursday in an apparent attempt to undercut anger against the United States, where the film was produced. Hundreds of youths, however, clashed with security officials as they tried in vain to reach the embassy in Islamabad amid anger in many countries over the film’s vulgar depiction of the Prophet Muhammad.
The advertisements appear to be an effort by the U.S. government to da
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Independent4233
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 12:26pm“State Department: We Never Linked Libya Attack to Anti-Muslim Video”
Hahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!
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Cymry
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:44pmbarry was probably admiring his gold “wedding ring” that has part of the shahada inscribed on it given to him in indonesia to notice what was going on in libya.
http://www.wnd.com/2012/10/obamas-ring-there-is-no-god-but-allah/
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BSdetector
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 9:00amInteresting.
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ginger100
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 9:27amConfirms what I’ve always believed. He may show up at christian church, but he faces Mecca five times a day in private.
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Jenasus
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:37pmObama used the excuse of the video to incite more violence in the Middle East.
Al-Qaeda is a black ops of the CIA.
The government is currently using Al-Qaeda in Syria which will lead to the start of World War III.
World War III will be a nuclear holocaust and you will need to prepare an underground shelter to survive.
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Cymry
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:45pmwars and rumours of wars. Jesus is coming back soon kids.
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strewth_cobber
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 8:27amAny comments re… Lemmings?
http://www.homelandsecurityus.com/archives/6938
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Soul Leister
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:29pmUsing this twisted logic after clinton is not longer the secretary of state we can conclude she was never the secretary of state???? Morons.
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Soul Leister
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:27pmQuick, someone get the AP the videos of Hillary (head of the state department) repeatedly apologizing for the video… LINKING IT… morons at the AP want a do over… the only people you are fooling is yourselves.
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momprayn
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:25pmWhat else would you expect out of our Communist run State Dept.? Thank God one of their evil, subversive “tricks” on the American people has seen the “light” of truth and been exposed, even though we still don’t know what exactly was going on there, except to know it was treasonous and destructive like the Fast & Furious deal. Some say it had to do with weapons the regime had given the rebels (AlQaeda) for the Arab Spring rebellion/in cahoots with MB…..Stevens involved with all that. Trying to find them and keep it secret their part. ?? Probably trying to kill several birds with one stone…..blame the horrible Christian extremists, etc. All I know is it backfired on them. That’s about the only good news. I hope it haunts them and helps them lose the elections. However, now there’s talk on the Jerusalem Post that the U.S. & Israel have gotten “closer” in the last few days (when they see his polling dropping badly), agreeing on a joint attack on Iran. Ah….the October surprise to help Obama just before the election?
http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=287148&R=R66
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zoro51
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:23pmstate deot is ran by LEFTISTS who DENY N LIE… washington needs to CLEAR N CLEAN DISENFECT the state dept.. NOW.. as well as IMPEACH OBAMA N THROW HIS ASS OUT OF THE USA.. america is treated n seen as FILTH our aaa credit rating LOWERD siince obama took office AMERICAN GAS is nearing 7 dollars n some states OBAMA CARES NOT hes off to the sultan of bruni ot get DONATIONS.. which NO american president EVER begged another5 nation for funds IMPEACH N THROW OUT NOW OBBAMA N MICHELL
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dickdastardly
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:21pmHOW TO STOP ISLAMIC TERRORISTS…… it worked once in our History…
Once in U.S. history an episode of Islamic terrorism was very quickly stopped. It happened in the Philippines about 1911, when Gen. John J. Pershing was in command of the garrison. There had been numerous Islamic terrorist attacks, so “Black Jack” told his boys to catch the perps and teach them a lesson.
Forced to dig their own graves, the terrorists were all tied to posts, execution style. The U.S. soldiers then brought in pigs and slaughtered them, rubbing their bullets in the blood and fat. Thus, the terrorists were terrorized; they saw that they would be contaminated with hogs’ blood. This would mean that they could not enter Heaven, even if they died as terrorist martyrs.
All but one was shot, their bodies dumped into the grave, and the hog guts dumped atop the bodies. The lone survivor was allowed to escape back to the terrorist camp and tell his brethren what happened to the others. This brought a stop to terrorism in the Philippines for the next 50 years.
Pointing a gun into the face of Islamic terrorists won’t make them flinch.
They welcome the chance to die for Allah. Like Gen. Pershing, we must show them that they won’t get to Muslim heaven (which they believe has an endless supply of virgins) but instead will die with the hated pigs of the devil.
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wisehiney
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:33pmHad an ancestor that help bust the Barbary Pirates arse once long ago at Libya. (“the shores of Tripoli”). No mercy for the unmerciful.
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SaturdaysWarrior76
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:16pmStinking LIARS.
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BODYBAG
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:16pmSomeone please remove this Marxist Kenyan MF’er from office NOW.
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pissantno.10
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:13pmwell you people just dont know that was last week. now that its his week well things are differant and some time later it could change agin . but we are headed to starbucks for coffee . and who knows what will happen next. you phesants just need to stop bothering us. muffy more sugar please. oh no i may have to toot call obama now
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purecolorartist
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:12pmGee that’s INCREDIBLE, I heard this story the day after it happened on CNN and other internet sources. Did they listen to the president of Libya right after? This is old news.
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lexington_green
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:07pmhopefully, they will piss off so many otherwise uninterested people that it won’t matter how many illegals, senile old folks, and dead people and their cats they sign up and wheel in.
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The-Monk
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:07pmSo I guess this means the film’s maker get released now?
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Soul Leister
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:30pmhe wasn’t arrested with making the film… he was arrested with a parole violation regarding the use of an alias….
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Eastinfection
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:35pmFraid not Monk.
Parole violation.
Al Capone finally went down for income-tax evasion, as i’m sure you well know…..
Think they may re-open Alcatraz for this guy.
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StarkeRaving
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 11:22pmHe most likely wants to stay put now that Clinton and Obama put a price on his head. If they had not thrown him under the bus he might have a chance at living but now with all Obama’s friends gunning for him I hope he has made funeral plans.
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LakeHartwellSailor
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:04pmThis is so sad. I am at lost for further words. It has all been said before. This administration is an all time low in our Nations history.
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Case_Logic
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:02pmPeople Died, Obama Lied. Or was it Obama Lied then People Died? Was this retribution from obama?
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CatB
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:13pmAnd he stood UP in the U.N. and chastised the United States for that DAMN video … people are DEAD . .because of CLINTON AND OBAMA .. .she works for him .. .they are both to blame .. and stop blaming AMERICA you POS BHO.
Yes .. I am PO’d big time … come on Nov 6th .!!!
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DontTreadOnTEA
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 10:13pmPeople Died. Obama Lied. Media Sighed. What a screwed up administration.
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hamrs_62
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 7:38amthe American people are to blame for hussein being in office in the first place, the left will not even think this is a issue, it is the democrat way, and they will vote for him again, this is how low our country has sunk, they still revere clinton (bill) as there first king, koolaid runs in their veins, and if independents can’t see through the lies were are a lost country, re-electing hussein will kill over 700,000 jobs in november right off the bat, then it will all start to implode
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lexington_green
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:02pmeverything about this president and his administration has been a lie since before anyone ever even knew his name. what an embarrassment. only problem is that they’ll turn the election results into another lie just like his buddy chavez did. dictatorship.
he’s no black messiah. he’s the black hitler, which, to some of his supporters, is probably equally acceptable.
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wisehiney
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:01pmThose guys went head up straight into it.
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Mr.Fitnah
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:59pmThe loons are running the asylum .
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Tri-ox
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:58pmSo, in other words, failed SOS Clinton, Susan Rice and obama have been LYING from day one.
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StarkeRaving
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 11:25pmyep
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kaydeebeau
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:52pmSO I guess it was a Hitlery Clinton look-a-like on TV all over the world apologizing for the video and stressing that the video was the problem???
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lexington_green
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:03pmlisten to the speeches she makes in other countries. the way she runs this country down to try and curry favor with foreign politicians and diplomats makes you want to puke … and then wring her fat neck.
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CatB
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:15pmDon’t forget she and Obummer spent $70,000 taxpayer dollars putting that d*mn apology on foreign TV!
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MaleneSBrown
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:51pm“Any explanation for the change in the story?????”
Ummm Diane, the President and everyone working around have been lying about everything since day one.
Goodbye Barry. Unless of course the election is stolen. Supporters are going around nursing homes and registering old folks who are incoherent. Only the Lord knows what else they’re doing. God save us from another 4 years.
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kickagrandma
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:54pmWe’ve heard about this in NC, too. HEADS UP AND PRAY ON, AMERICA!
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kaydeebeau
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:00pmThey carried bus loads of Ohio State college students to early voting at an O rally there today. I’m not sure what the rules are in OH, but in my state, you can’t just go vote anywhere in TN to vote early, you have to vote early in the county where you have legal residence – of course we also have voter id requirements…..
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lexington_green
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:05pmdon’t forget the 500,000 phantom union members and all the blacks who want to go play whack-and-crack at the polling stations on election day. oh, and soros is counting the votes. transparency indeed. good times.
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FEMALL
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:40pmI think the entire State Dept should relocate to Benghazi. It would save a ton of money on rent that they could use for security.
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RJJinGadsden
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:50pmFEMALL, Don’t stop there. The entire U.N. should pack up lock, stock, and barrel and mover there. Problem is, they would really fit in. But, they would be the hell out of here.
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HI_Don
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 9:38pmMost of them (The U.N.) already have summer homes there. They don’t need security details. In fact some of them probably either provided the ammo or the plans.
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kickagrandma
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:38pmOh, I’m sorry, YES YOU DID!!!
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Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
Posted on October 9, 2012 at 8:30pmThe state Dept also doesn’t relate the smell of crap to the fact they got their heads up their rear end either.
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