Earlier today, and on their first day back at work, Senators John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Kelly Ayotte met privately with U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice.
Rice was on the Hill to offer her harshest critics an explanation of her initial comments on the September 11th attack on Benghazi. The meeting was supposed to mollify the Senators. It failed.
MCCAIN: We are significantly troubled by many of the answers that we got–and some we didn’t get–concerning evidence that was overwhelming leading up to the attack on the consulate…
GRAHAM: I’m more disturbed now than I was before… the 16 September explanation about how four Americans died in Benghazi in Libya by Ambassador Rice I think does not do justice to the reality at the time and in hindsight clearly was completely wrong.
AYOTTE: I’m more troubled today, knowing having met with the acting director of the CIA and Ambassador Rice because, it’s clear from the beginning that we knew that those with ties to Al Qaeda were involved in the attack on the Embassy. And clearly the impression that was given, the information given to the American people, was wrong.
We now know that the idea that an outrageous and offensive tape sparked that particular outrage (as Ms Rice originally said) is not correct, but the suggestion that Ms. Rice–for whatever reason–deliberately misled the public is even further from the truth.
This witch-hunt is misplaced and, quite frankly, a waste of time. What our dear electeds should be focusing on, is encouraging an open dialogue with all agencies involved, and resolving the more serious issues of security, brazen acts of terror, and finally giving the families of the four Americans who were tragically killed in the attack some closure. Susan Rice is not responsible for the goings on at all U.S. embassies and this smells of another attempt (like the one on Attorney General Eric Holder,) by the right to taint a member of this president’s administration. Indeed, the only thing troubling and disturbing here is that lawmakers are using the tragedy of Benghazi for some kind of personal attack on Ambassador Rice. One thing is certain, however: If she is nominated to replace Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, it’s going to be confirmation hearings worth watching.
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