OPINION_ Graham should keep pushing for Libya info

Graham should keep pushing for Libya info

8 hours ago
• By sfogle@timesanddemocrat.

com (1) Comments


THE ISSUE: Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi

OUR OPINION: Petraeus scandal further complicates search for answers


Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina is a respected voice in foreign affairs. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, he is frequently looked to as an authority on Capitol Hill.

As the election approached a week ago, Graham was a voice calling for accountability from the Obama administration about what happened on Sept. 11 in the attack on U.S. diplomatic personnel in Benghazi, Libya, that claimed four lives.

On Nov. 1, Graham said: “Enough already, Mr. President. You need to address the American people and account for your leadership in the attack on our Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. You should explain to the American people what you knew, when you knew it, and what you did about it before, during and after the attack.

“It is wrong for you to repeatedly refuse to answer even the most basic questions about the death of Ambassador (Chris) Stevens and the three other Americans killed in Benghazi. The continued revelations about this debacle must be addressed.”

On Nov. 5, Graham said, “During an unaired portion of his September 12th interview with 60 Minutes, President Obama refused to answer when asked if Benghazi was a terrorist attack. Now that this information has become public, it raises two very serious questions.

“First, the President contradicts the narrative he tried to create in the second presidential debate that he immediately called the deaths of Ambassador Stevens and three other Americans a terrorist attack. He didn’t. And for many days afterwards he continued to blame the Benghazi attack on a video. It also clearly goes against the false narrative peddled by Ambassador Susan Rice who took to the Sunday talk shows five days after the September 11th attack to say it was a riot based on a video. ...

“Second, for two out of the last three elections, CBS News reporting has created false impressions. CBS needs to do some serious self-evaluation and give serious consideration to appointing an independent body to look into this matter. ... Some CBS reporters have tried to report on the Benghazi debacle and have brought important information to light. Unfortunately, this important information was withheld from the American people who deserved to hear what President Obama said.”

Graham knew there would be no day of reckoning on the attacks until after the Nov. 6 voting. Congress was not in town and the debate would be left to politicians such as Graham speaking out and media coverage of what happened in Libya all within the larger context of the election – and giant storm that dominated headlines in the days before the election.

Enter the latest twist, and it’s is a big one.

Graham and other members of Congress, including leading Democrats, want to know more details about the FBI investigation that revealed an extramarital affair between ex-CIA Director David Petraeus and his biographer, questioning when the retired general popped up in the FBI inquiry, whether national security was compromised and why they weren’t told sooner.

“We received no advanced notice. It was like a lightning bolt,” said Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee.

The FBI was investigating harassing emails sent by Petraeus biographer and girlfriend Paula Broadwell to a second woman. That probe of Broadwell’s emails revealed the affair between Broadwell and Petraeus. The FBI contacted Petraeus and other intelligence officials, and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper asked Petraeus to resign.

Petraeus, 60, quit Friday after acknowledging an extramarital relationship. He has been married 38 years to Holly Petraeus, with whom he has two adult children, including a son who led an infantry platoon in Afghanistan as an Army lieutenant.

Not without justification, Rep. Peter King, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said the circumstances of the FBI probe smack of a cover-up by the White House.

“It seems this (the investigation) has been going on for several months and, yet, now it appears that they’re saying that the FBI didn’t realize until Election Day that General Petraeus was involved. It just doesn’t add up,” King, R-N.Y., told The Associated Press.

The Petraeus resignation further clouds the fact-finding task regarding the attack in Libya. Petraeus had been scheduled to appear before congressional intelligence committees on Thursday to testify on the attack in Benghazi.

Now Petraeus’ affair with Broadwell will be the subject of meetings Wednesday involving the committee leaders, FBI Deputy Director Sean Joyce and CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell.

AP reports indicate Morell is expected to testify in place of Petraeus, though lawmakers says it is possible that Petraeus will be asked to appear on Capitol Hill to testify.

Count us among those favoring going beyond making requests of Petraeus, even though he is no longer in the CIA job. He should be compelled to testify.

As Graham said: “I don’t see how in the world you can find out what happened in Benghazi before, during and after the attack if Gen. Petraeus doesn’t testify.”


Tags David Petraeus, United States, Military Personnel, Politics, Benghazi, Lindsey Graham, Libya, President, Central Intelligence Agency, War In Afghanistan, Director Of Central Intelligence, Barack Obama, Federal Bureau Of Investigation, Ambassador, Obama, Michael Morell, Fbi, Paula Broadwell, South Carolina, Senate Armed Services Committee, Obama Administration, Capitol Hill, Dianne Feinstein, Stevens, Susan Rice, Cbs News, Congress, Director, Media Coverage, Biographer, Senate Intelligence Committee, California, General, James Clapper, National Intelligence, Peter King, Army Lieutenant, Afghanistan, Holly Petraeus, King Chairman, White House, House Homeland Security Committee, Chairman, The Associated Press, King, New York, Deputy Director, Sean Joyce, Military, Graham


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