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Rubio: We still need answers on Benghazi
by Ed Morrissey
November 29, 2012
Lost in all of the discussion of Susan Rices political future have been the real failures of the State Department and the White House to properly secure our consulate in Benghazi, and the inadequate response to the terrorist attack that killed four Americans on the anniversary of 9/11. In a CNN column, Senator Marco Rubio dispassionately lays out all of the open questions about the incident itself and the US response to the threat before, during, and afterward. Rubio manages to make a comprehensive case for extensive investigation without once mentioning Susan Rice:
Rubio: We still need answers on Benghazi « Hot Air
by Ed Morrissey
November 29, 2012
Lost in all of the discussion of Susan Rices political future have been the real failures of the State Department and the White House to properly secure our consulate in Benghazi, and the inadequate response to the terrorist attack that killed four Americans on the anniversary of 9/11. In a CNN column, Senator Marco Rubio dispassionately lays out all of the open questions about the incident itself and the US response to the threat before, during, and afterward. Rubio manages to make a comprehensive case for extensive investigation without once mentioning Susan Rice:
State Department documents revealed that slain Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and others had warned several times of growing problems with security and violence in eastern Libya, where Benghazi is located, after the fall of Moammar Gadhafi and after the Transitional National Council moved its governing headquarters from Benghazi to Tripoli in September 2011. Stevens predecessor Ambassador Gene Cretz had also sent cables to the State Department warning of the deepening security crisis in Libya.
Well before the Benghazi attack, our intelligence agencies, Department of Defense and State Department cables from the U.S. Embassy in Libya all warned of a growing security crisis. They said terrorists from across the region, including al Qaeda elements believed to be associated with al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, were able to travel freely into the country to recruit, organize, plan attacks and procure weapons.
We understand from congressional testimony that the deputy assistant secretary for international programs in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security has broad authority over the allocation of security resources, with life and death consequences for our diplomats. Given the vulnerability of nontraditional posts like Benghazi, we should determine whether higher-level officials should oversee security issues. If not, we must be sure that anyone assuming such a position is adequately qualified in overseas security operations and threat analysis.
We must also ensure that clear mechanisms are in place to enable a seamless emergency response among the different agencies that share responsibility. On all these counts, we have more questions right now than answers.
Rubios correct, in both substance and approach. Rices involvement in this fiasco relates to her fronting a false narrative on the attack, relevant only to the extent that we find out why Rice did so. Well before the Benghazi attack, our intelligence agencies, Department of Defense and State Department cables from the U.S. Embassy in Libya all warned of a growing security crisis. They said terrorists from across the region, including al Qaeda elements believed to be associated with al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, were able to travel freely into the country to recruit, organize, plan attacks and procure weapons.
We understand from congressional testimony that the deputy assistant secretary for international programs in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security has broad authority over the allocation of security resources, with life and death consequences for our diplomats. Given the vulnerability of nontraditional posts like Benghazi, we should determine whether higher-level officials should oversee security issues. If not, we must be sure that anyone assuming such a position is adequately qualified in overseas security operations and threat analysis.
We must also ensure that clear mechanisms are in place to enable a seamless emergency response among the different agencies that share responsibility. On all these counts, we have more questions right now than answers.
Rubio: We still need answers on Benghazi « Hot Air
