Seasoned counterterrorism reporter Catherine Herridge, part of a Fox News team that has been dogging the story of the September 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya that resulted in the death of four Americans, has revealed the existence of a cable sent to the Office of the Secretary of State weeks before. The cable concluded that the consulate could not withstand a “coordinated attack.” Further, the cable identified terrorist groups that were operating in the area. The existence of this document raises some serious questions.
1. Why was the cable kept secret for so long? Even if the senior officials did not see this cable before the attack, it is impossible to believe that they would not have been able to track it down within hours after the attack. The attack occurred well over a month ago. It is difficult to believe that at least the main points could not have been made public without jeopardizing operational security or the ongoing investigation in the aftermath of the attack. There is no reasonable reason to keep this information from the public.
2. How could anyone rule out a terrorist attack? In the days following the attack, some senior Administration officials insisted the assault on the embassy was a spontaneous act. This assessment, they claim, was based on the view of the intelligence community. How could intelligence agencies not have access to this cable? If they did, how could they rule out the possibility of a terrorist attack? It just doesn’t add up.
3. Why didn’t the Administration provide any interim findings of their investigation into the Benghazi attack? Could anyone imagine after the first 9/11 that the government would say we would have to wait months before any accounting of the events on that day? Yet, the Administration expects the American people to wait months to know what the government knew before the attack and what it did in the first 24 hours after the assault commenced. That seems unreasonable.
4. Why wasn’t a coordinated rapid response force ready to go? Given this assessment, it is difficult to understand why an appropriate response force for exactly the kind of attack that happened wasn’t ready to launch at a moment’s notice—and if there was such a capability, why it wasn’t used. The claim that the U.S. government lacked sufficient intelligence to respond rings hollow when this cable laid out exactly what kind of attack to expect.
5. How long do we have to wait to get answers to obvious questions? Nothing the Administration has said to date adequately addresses the issues raised by this cable. The Administration has had more than a month to reflect on this evidence. They ought to be able to comment on it and explain how it squares with what Administration officials have said in the last weeks—and they ought to be able to do it right now.
After the first 9/11, all we asked was for a government to be better at “connecting the dots” and then sharing that information. We have a right to know why our government has failed miserably at this fundamental task.
The info in this cable does raise many questions but, I keep wondering, if the security situation was so weak and the possibility of a coordinated attack so real, why did Ambassador Stevens travel to Benghazi on 9/11 with no security detail? If he knew of the very real danger and the lack of security, why would he go there? Something here betwixt and between the facts and the reporting and the speculation don't seem to jibe.
Possibly because he was denied when he requested additional security in the weeks days leading up to it. Plus I think that suggesting a coordinated attack is just hearsay is silly considering serious attacks occurred twice recently. A bombing is in and of itself coordinated and planned.
My understanding is that he went there to help evacuate the facility.
Mike, I appreciate that you wrote this more than two-weeks ago. However, to be on the safe side, can you provide source data, albeit print, internet, or televised media; or simply where did you understanding of the event come from?
the answer to your question is he has a job, and MUST follow orders, its simple, he trusted them, who would have thought they would be murdered by their own government wake up people
We need to seriously consider who the next Commander-in-Chief will be when we go to vote!
The cover up will continue until the main stream media moves on. Obama, Clinton, etc., must be held accountable and if proven a cover up should resign or be impeached.
Why doesn't anyone do something about all the LIES that are being told, how much clearer a picture do the ones that can do something NEED!! FOUR AMERICANS ARE NO LONGER WITH US, because of gross neglect !!!! WHY !!!!!!!!!!
and what about the 4,000 americans no longer with us because of all the intelligence bush ignored?
The dogged refusal of the Legacy Media not to pursue this story prior to the election, though not surprising, remains appalling. Herridge deserves a Pulitzer for her reporting on this abysmally handled episode. It underscores, at best, near criminal ineptitude by this Administration – and, at worst, political calculations at their most cynical.
A lot of “serious questions” were asked during Fast and Furious. What did that get us? More lies and distortion, along with EP. Obama and Hillary, along with the lap-dog media, are guilty of treason. We now have proof Obama and Hillary watched four Americans die without lifting one finger to help. Yet we are hard pressed to find one mention of this in any other outlet. Every time Obama or Hillary are asked “serious questions” what do they do? They lie and distort. But still the media refuses to tell the American people the truth. Unless we watch the left-hated FNC, the people will never learn the truth, at least until after November 6th.
There is absolutely NO reason for this to happen with a prepared organized government. This can ONLY be high crimes and a dereliction of duty. The Republican party has got to move on this whether or not Obama is re- elected. If he is though, it only goes to show how far this country has sunk. The servants that we elect to the Republican majority in the House better get "on the stick" quick, otherwise neither party has the voting publics best interest at heart!
It is a shame that the government has such contempt for the people who put them in office. They hide facts through subterfuge and "smoke and mirrors" techniques that never truly, or truthfully answers the questions. Is this because it's an election year for the presidency, or a deeper hidden agenda? It seems that Washington in general seems to look down it's nose at those same people that elected them and put them in office to begin with. We, as Americans deserve to know the truth about why 4 American citizens were left unprotected within a country with hostile factions that were out to hurt America at any cost. These 4 Americans were brave people doing a job that they were sent to do, without proper safeguards in place for their protection. Do the politicians somehow think that a simple "We're sorry" response is actually going to make the people that were affected by this horrible act feel any better?. Someone is to blame for this horrible mistake, and should be brought to account for this, whether it is President Obama or Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ( if that's the person the Democrats want to "throw under the bus"). Someone needs to step forth and take responsibility for the inaction on the part of the government in this tragedy. Let's hope that someone will feel convicted by their own conscience, and step forth with the truth behind this tragedy. My heart and prayers go out to those individuals whose lives have been devastated. Let the truth be heard!!!
Mr Carfano, As a former Ranger with the United States Army, I can assure you that situations such as this IS what we were trained to deal with…that this administration could claim what it has is an insult to all of us who have volunteered to serve this GREAT nation!
WhiteFalcon1, you're SPOT ON! We ALWAYS go immediately to the aid/assistance of our embattled brothers & sisters; at whatever risk including our own lives. And we NEVER leave anybody behind; even if our people are tragically WIA/KIA, we do whatever it takes, regardless of the risk to go get them! What this dishonest & corrupt administration has done/is doing is indeed an insult to all veterans and to all the brave young men & women serving our nation! Pundits have claimed that this Benghazi-Gate is comparable to Watergate that brought down Nixon. WRONG! Nobody DIED during Watergate! (part 1 of 2 part reply)…TBC
(Part 2 of Reply to WhiteFalcon1)….But 4 of our people died in this terrorist attack, including 2 incredibly brave former US Navy Seals who disobeyed orders to rescue many people trapped in that "consulate" and then BEGGED for support (including CAS) that was DENIED. For the WH to say that it didn't know, or that it gave an order (where's the order?) to support the kids on the ground, or putting the SecDef (Panetta who's not qualified for that position!) out there to say "we don't commit forces without a clear picture of what's happening on the ground" is deceptive at best and in reality is nothing but smoke & mirrors and a pack of LIES! We have an election coming next Tues; we need to REMOVE these despicable people from power and pursue criminal charges against them with emphasis on the LYING "Teleprompter". Thanks for your service, Semper Fi!
Thank you for your service to this great nation. The two men who were killed trying to defend the lives of those in the compound are heroes of the first order and need to recognized as such.
"We have a right to know why our government has failed miserably at this fundamental task."
This administration failed us because it was focused on one thing only: defending its ideology, protecting its backside, continuing the charade that "Obama bin Laden" had brought democracy to Libya and weakened Al Aqaeda. The Narcissist-in-Chief had one focus only–not saving lives in imminent peril, but "How can I cover this up to save ME?" He is a despicable coward.
Only an enlightened electorate can rid us of the scourge of Obama and his fellow-travelers. May God deliver us from him and all those like him.
Of course this is another nail in the coffin of the Oblunder Administration, and it is most assuredly a stake in the heart of Hillary's 2016 presidential aspirations.
What puzzles me the most is the almost total silence of the other 'major' media sources with regards to this unfolding tragedy, and the ensuing cover-up that has now extended its treacherous tentacles all the way to the Situation Room in the White House!
How can ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, CBS, and the printed media completely bypass the biggest cover-up in the past fifty years, only being surpassed by the Kennedy Assassination?
America cannot afford nor survive four more years of Barry Soetoro, a.k.a. President Barack Hussein Obama, the WORST, MOST CORRUPT, MOST DECEITFUL, MOST UNDERPERFORMING president in the history of our great nation!
It would be another nail in the coffin, however, due to the silence of the major media sources most of the Obama supporters will not know about it until after the election when it will be too late. We can only hope that the "silent majority" will not be silent next Tuesday.
Did the admin fail or were they part of the problem? That is the question.
They n=knew the embassy could not withstand a terrorist attack and b4 the ink is dry on the memo there IS a terrorist attack.
Coincidence?
It doesn't fit the narrative of the Otrauma Administration.
Red Herring. Tempest-in-a-teapot. You choose the descriptor. This tragedy was a function of the State Department pushing the envelope and doing what Foreign Service Officers (like me) are hired, trained, and choose to do.
The message traffic from damned-near every post in that part of the world is chock-a-block full of cautionary language. And there are daily ~summaries~ of threats at each post that run to several pages (the actual documents to dozens of pages). It would have been suspicious had there ~not~ been cable traffic calling attention to threats in Benghazi…
I'm curious too as to why, on the anniversary of 9/11, and given the outrage over the video, Chris wasn't taking a more aggressive defensive posture. And I'm sure that's been/being debated hotly on the 7th floor of the HST building.
But the manufactured hysteria and out-right fabrications ("Navy SEALs held-off a platoon of terrorists, contravening POTUS Order!") are just disgusting.
Vote for whom you wish for POTUS. But do so on more than this kind of thin, hysterical rhetoric.
I don't vote for liars. Obama has lied to cover his political butt. He has is no leader. A "good" leader has guts and does what's right. Obama is a liar or incompetent, or both. I vote for both. Unbelievable he has not had a press conference. This will not go away until the American people get the truth.
Part 1 of 2. This thing has "stink" written all over it. Trying to stand back and take a telescopic view rather than putting scores of details under a microscope — so here's just some random, unorganized thoughts. 1) "Somewhere" I read that the Benghazi CIA annex was conducting a program of weapons buy-back. Presume those were weapons the USA gave to the Libyan "freedom fighters." Would sure like to rule out an Iran-Contra-like situation!! 2) WHY did Ambassador Stevens leave Tripoli and go to Benghazi on that particular date? Did he not have a security detail with him? What was the purpose of his meeting with the Turkish ambassador? more TK
Part 2 of 2. 3) On 9-11 exactly how many people were in the Consulate compound, and exactly how many people were in the CIA annex? Of these, how many were Americans? What were their jobs? 4) "Somewhere" I read that General Ham was replaced DURING this situation, presumably for disobeying "stand down" orders. He was replaced by his second in command (Gen. Rodriguez, I think). Anyone else read that? 5) "Somewhere" I read that the Benghazi Consulate staff were given hazard pay. Who made this decision? When was this? Was it in response to any of the requests they made for additional security? Hazard pay would seem to be some sort of acknowledgement of eminent danger. 6) It is preposterous to believe that Benghazi is a long serious of bungling oversights by such a large number of seasoned professionals. Methinks there is entirely something else of a covert nature going on there that NO ONE wants made known. ~~ Just a view from my telescope. Comments are welcome/invited.
If a citizen watches someone die without trying to get them help or call authorities ….isn't this against the law and we are arrested for it.. What has happened in Benghazi so wrong…and so sad.
And "Them Chickens Are HOME To Roost" How do YOU like it America?