Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has scheduled a public hearing next week to explore the 2012 terrorist attack against the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya — the first public meeting his new committee has held since he was picked to lead it back in May.
The fiery Republican is known for his aggressive questioning style during House hearings, and was initially expected to use that style in a barrage of public hearings on the Benghazi attack.
But Gowdy surprised many by going months without holding any public hearings at all. In an August interview with ABC News, Gowdy stressed that he was using his chairmanship to run a professional investigation that focuses on fact-gathering instead of creating gotcha moments for TV cameras.
"If you want to get on the news, then go rob a bank," he deadpanned to ABC.
But some public meetings were expected, and Gowdy's committee finally announced one for September 17.
That meeting, which the committee's website labels as "Hearing 1," will hear from one Obama administration official — Greg Starr, assistant secretary of State for Diplomatic Security. It will also hear from two members of the Independent Panel on Best Practices, the group of outside experts that the State Department has consulted on the issue of embassy security.
