Sen. John McCain isn't buying Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's assertion that she is "fully responsible" for the security failures at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi prior to the deadly 9/11 terrorist attack. Appearing on Fox News Channel's "America's Newsroom" on Tuesday, McCain said no matter what Clinton says, the "buck stops" with the president of the United States.

Clinton's decision to take all the blame is part of a broader plan to protect President Barack Obama before the upcoming election, according to McCain.

The former Republican presidential nominee also said the Obama administration has been in "cover-up mode" ever since the fiery attack, which left U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead. The White House repeatedly blamed the attack on an anti-Muslim video even though intelligence suggested it was a terrorist attack as soon as 24 hours after the assault.

McCain wants to know what the president knew, when he knew it, and then what he did about it -- all facts that the Obama administration has not been exactly forthcoming about.

"It’s either willful deception or a degree of incompetence and failure to understand fundamental facts on the ground. Either one of those is obviously totally unacceptable. There’s failures (by the administration) all over the Middle East," McCain said.

Watch the clip via Fox News:

Featured image via AP