October 26, 2012
The Benghazi Coverup
It's been the cover-up story "relegated" to Fox News and the internet. But perhaps it will change now that we know the Obama Administration refused the CIA military support 3 times during the Benghazi Consulate attack.
[A]n urgent request from the CIA annex for military back-up during the attack on the U.S. consulate and subsequent attack several hours later was denied by U.S. officials -- who also told the CIA operators twice to "stand down" rather than help the ambassador's team when shots were heard at approximately 9:40 p.m. in Benghazi on Sept. 11.And we also now know that an AC-130 Gunship was actually on station and ready to go.Former Navy SEAL Tyrone Woods was part of a small team who was at the CIA annex about a mile from the U.S. consulate where Ambassador Chris Stevens and his team came under attack. When he and others heard the shots fired, they informed their higher-ups at the annex to tell them what they were hearing and requested permission to go to the consulate and help out. They were told to "stand down," according to sources familiar with the exchange. Soon after, they were again told to "stand down."
Woods and at least two others ignored those orders and made their way to the consulate which at that point was on fire. Shots were exchanged. The rescue team from the CIA annex evacuated those who remained at the consulate and Sean Smith, who had been killed in the initial attack. They could not find the ambassador and returned to the CIA annex at about midnight.
At that point, they called again for military support and help because they were taking fire at the CIA safe house, or annex. The request was denied.
The security officer had a laser on the target that was firing and repeatedly requested back-up support from a Specter gunship, which is commonly used by U.S. Special Operations forces to provide support to Special Operations teams on the ground involved in intense firefights. The fighting at the CIA annex went on for more than four hours — enough time for any planes based in Sigonella Air base, just 480 miles away, to arrive. Fox News has also learned that two separate Tier One Special operations forces were told to wait, among them Delta Force operators.And we were told it was a YouTube video? No, the only video involved was the live feed from an on-station Drone that was being watched by the incompetent as our citizens were murdered. A grieving father and a nation wants answers. Hopefully the rest of the media will get more vociferous in their questioning.
Juan Cole had an interesting take on this. Hindsight is always 20/20.
www.juancole.com/2012/10/open-source-center-reports-from-sept-12-on-consulate-attack-support-crowd-protests.html
There's no cover-up here. Just the fog of war.
Posted by: Russ at October 26, 2012 2:46 PMI can actually see how it would be preferred on the larger scale to let a few State Department staff die in the field than activate the CIA and tip our hand to the Egyptians that at any moment, we have dozens of undercover CIA agents and drones, ready to do targeted strikes.
Politically, it would be VERY bad for the new Egyptian government to appear to be allowing the CIA operate there in such a capacity.
I have a friend in the State Department. This sort of thing is an accepted risk of the job. I don't think it's fair to pin the blame on any one entity.
Posted by: mangeek at October 26, 2012 2:56 PMCount on Russ to come up with any excuse he can locate to defend this lousy president and his entourage-of course,I'm pretty certain Russ would find a way to justify these abominable UN monitors infiltrating our electoral system.
Just gotta make sure Diaz or Pichardo gets those legislative for the Elmwood Little League or whatever.
I don't know what's so interesting about a far-left blogger cherrypicking reports to defend the Obama administration, which he supported going into Libya while simultaneously criticizing American "neo-colonialism" in the Middle East.
Posted by: Dan at October 26, 2012 3:35 PMI don't think the point is hard to make. Where we have capacity, we do not allow Americans to be killed by al-Qaeda backed mobs.
I don't think it needed to be a White House decision. It is hard to believe that a theater commander does not have authority to react when Americans are under fire.
Posted by: Warrington Faust at October 26, 2012 6:06 PMWhere is the hindsight in refusing aid to people under attack, Russ? Perhaps it's your hindsight, because your head is so far up your a__ that you can't think? You make me sick.
Posted by: Mike at October 26, 2012 8:13 PMYup...it wasn't You Tube after all. The video maker is in prison. The killers and rapers in Libya are still free. Such is life in Hussein's Amerika. I'm sure Hussein will apologize for the idiot Secretary of State Clinton,the hand puppet Jay Carney and even himself. This White House is beyond incompetent. It is in bed with our enemies and the media is along for the descent.
Posted by: ANTHONY at October 26, 2012 8:30 PMI just saw a report that the Pentagon had to little information to deploy troops. Perhaps. Do you know what the effect on that crowd would have been if a jet had hit afterburners at 400 feet? They would all have been deaf. That makes co-ordination difficult.
Posted by: Warrington Faust at October 27, 2012 2:11 AM"This sort of thing is an accepted risk of the job."
No, Mangeek, the deliberate, coldblooded, REPEATED decision to let people die is definitely not nor should it be an acceptable risk of the job.
Posted by: Monique at October 27, 2012 7:31 AMOK, I'll start the chant
"Obama lied, people died"
Posted by: Warrington Faust at October 27, 2012 10:09 AM@warrington-it should be:people died/Obama lied-his lies didn't get anyone killed-they were told to cover his ass
Posted by: joe bernstein at October 28, 2012 5:47 PMJust a correction for mangeek: It wasn't Egypt; it was Libya.
Posted by: Justin Katz at October 28, 2012 8:50 PM"Count on Russ to come up with any excuse he can locate to defend this lousy president..."
Actually I think there's quite a bit to dislike about Obama's foreign policy without manufacturing a controversy... Pakistan? Afghanistan? Drones? Killing US citizens? This blog won't talk about any of those.
Posted by: Russ at October 31, 2012 9:34 AMThere seems to be quite a lot of web rumor that Gen. Ham was arrested and relieved of command for refusal to obey Pentagon orders to "stand down".
Has anyone seen anything from a recognized source?
Rumor is that an Admiral is getting the axe too.
Posted by: Warringtn Faust at October 31, 2012 8:29 PM