White House Whitewashing - 7 Days after Benghazi

(Written 9/19/12, 7 days after the Benghazi terror attacks. Not much has changed.)
 
The White House feels obligated, especially in a time of crisis, to remind us again that they believe there is no such thing as Radical Islamists that want us dead; that they believe there is no War on Terrorism. "Let's just tell the American people it was all about a 13 minute amateur video that insulted the prophet, and upset some demonstrators. Yeah, they'll believe that…they will believe anything!"
 
Below is my commentary on the assassination of our Ambassador to Libya - and yes, it was an assassination of a top US Official and staff, by Al-Qaeda or a related terrorist group, followed by a ridiculous attempted coverup by the White House.
 
Maybe I have a clearer understanding of events because I went through Diplomatic Security Training and then lived and worked at the US Embassy in Baghdad. I possibly have a better perspective of how things operate in that world, but anyone with common sense would realize that on the anniversary of 911, in a Nation that just went through an uprising, in a Nation that has significant terrorists and Al-Qaeda links, one would expect a heightened awareness of danger for a US Ambassador and personnel, and would expect heightened security.
 
It wasn’t difficult from the onset to see what happened was a terrorist attack and assassination, even before all the facts come out.
 
According to CNN, the attack immediately followed a demand from an Al Qaeda leader for revenge for the death in June of a senior Libyan member of the terror group Abu Yahya al-Libi. There had been an attack on the International Red Cross station in Benghazi in May, and on the same Consulate in June. We now know that the Ambassador thought Al-Qaeda had a price on his head, and that the Libyans were warning them days before of danger in Benghazi.
 
So why was there not very high security for these men? Why was the Ambassador allowed to go to Benghazi, and not ordered to remain in the safety of the Embassy in Tripoli? This goes beyond an intelligence failure.
 
In Iraq we would have been in total lock down mode, covered with private security guards, not allowed to leave the Embassy grounds when on high alert. In circumstances like thye faced in Benghazi, trips out of the Baghdad Embassy would be cancelled, and extra security alerts issued at even a whisper of insurgent action. We were always on high alert on a 911 anniversary, that is before President Obama took control, and we had US troops in Iraq providing intel on the terrorist's movements and plans. Not so in Libya, and apparently there were very few guards. One of the killed was former SEAL and then private security contractor, similar to what we had in Baghdad. Even as a low ranking civilian Inspector, I had far more cover than this Ambassador apparently did.
 
And now we have a complete cover up by the White House. There is something else going on here. Why has the White House been screaming from the rooftops that it was a demonstration about a U-Tube clip that got out of hand?
 
Seriously? Exactly how STUPID do you think the American People are?
 
And why are we sending the FBI to investigate? They have jurisdiction over criminal matters on US soil. Yes, the Embassy is US soil, on foreign ground. But the White House is so avid about their message that no war on terrorism with Muslim extremists exists, that this can't be seen as a military matter, or a matter of war. They have slashed funding for Embassy security and want no US troops in Libya. Well, that proved to be deadly.
 
If this wasn’t bad enough, as the attacks were taking place, the President did not take the “2am wakeup call” as was promised in his last election. Not only did he not get immediately involved in the attack on our Embassy, but according to analysts, he took a full 15 hours before he even made a statement. Rather than take a security briefing, he flew to Las Vegas  to attend a fundraiser. Really? This did not surprise those who have complained that he very seldom attends security briefings. And what statement was finally made by our President after this terror attack on US soil in Libya? He made disparaging remarks about Romney’s immediate reaction to the attack, rather than handling the actual terrorist attack itself.
 
The President started the apologies to the extremists and excuses of how a demonstrating crowd had gotten out of hand. He sent the US Ambassador to the UN to every Sunday morning talk show touting the “spontaneous demonstration that turned into an attack as a result of a U-Tube video” story. President Obama, along with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, then took the podium at the homecoming of the bodies of the fallen, and spewed their rhetoric at the actual memorial service, blaming the video for the murders of the fine men. A bad novelist couldn’t have written this. It is stunning.
 
And so the chaos in the Middle East continues, with apologies from the State Department to the extremists, and ridiculous excuses from the White House for the riots and killing of our great Diplomats.

I can picture the conversation in the halls of the White House: "Let's just tell the American people it was all about a 13 minute amateur video that insulted the prophet. Yeah, they'll believe that...they will believe anything! After all, it is an election year, and we own the media.”
 

Robin, editor in chief of Conservative Truth and founder of Church4Israel, is a recipient of the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Global War on Terror and served as an Inspector and Auditor / Investigative Analyst for the US Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction in Baghdad, Iraq and Washington DC.