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Panetta: Obama never called back to check on Benghazi
Hot Air.com ^ | February 8, 2013 | ED MORRISSEY

Posted on 02/08/2013 4:28:30 PM PST by Kaslin

We didn’t get to this yesterday, but it’s definitely worth watching — especially for the skill shown by Lindsey Graham in his examination of Leon Panetta and General Martin Dempsey. The headline takeaway will be what is remembered most: the revelation that Barack Obama never bothered to keep in touch with his chair of the Joint Chiefs and Secretary of Defense after being informed that an American consulate was under attack from terrorists.

But if that’s all you hear from this, you’re missing the big picture. Graham managed to elicit a number of damaging statements from the two. Not one aircraft had been deployed during the attack; not one boot left the ground outside of Libya. As far as the 281 concurrent threat reports that Panetta and Dempsey claimed kept them from considering Benghazi a special threat, Graham asks how many of those cables came from US Ambassadors stating specifically (as Stevens’ did) that an American installation was incapable of defending itself against a sustained attack and that government buildings nearby were flying al-Qaeda flags — “because I want to know about them, if they do,” Graham adds. Dempsey tries to push that off to State, at which time Graham informs Dempsey that Hillary Clinton claimed never to have seen that cable, even though Dempsey clearly had, which he admits is “surprising.”

Graham then circles back to the lack of action from the White House once the attack was under way:

Lindsey Graham Hammers Leon Panetta & Gen Dempsey on Benghazi and not getting troops there

SEN. GRAHAM: Are you surprised that the president of the United States never called you, Secretary Panetta, and say, ‘how’s it going?’

SEC. PANETTA: I — you know, normally in these situations –

SEN. GRAHAM: Did he know the level of threat that –

SEC. PANETTA: Let — well, let me finish the answer. We were deploying the forces. He knew we were deploying the forces. He was being kept updated –

SEN. GRAHAM: Well, I hate to interrupt you, but I got limited time. We didn’t deploy any forces. Did you call him back — wait a minute –

SEC. PANETTA: No, but the event — the event was over by the time we got –

SEN. GRAHAM: Mr. Secretary, you didn’t know how long the attack would last. Did you ever call him and say, Mr. President, it looks like we don’t have anything to get there anytime soon?

SEC. PANETTA: The event was over before we could move any assets.

SEN. GRAHAM: It lasted almost eight hours. And my question to you is during that eight-hour period, did the president show any curiosity about how’s this going, what kind of assets do you have helping these people? Did he ever make that phone call?

SEC. PANETTA: Look, there is no question in my mind that the president of the United States was concerned about American lives and, frankly, all of us were concerned about American lives.

SEN. GRAHAM: With all due respect, I don’t believe that’s a credible statement if he never called and asked you, are we helping these people; what’s happening to them? We have a second round, and we’ll take it up then.

Graham just demolished the entire White House defense on Benghazi in less than ten minutes of cross-examination.


TOPICS: Editorial
KEYWORDS: benghazi; crossborderauthority; generaldempsey; leonpanetta; libya; lindseygraham; navyseals; obamaspeople; panettahearing; terrorism; threatmatrix; waronterror
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To: livius
Perhaps Obama was informed initially (when he called Panetta)...

That scenario really doesn't fly. Please see post #22 for the explanation.

41 posted on 02/08/2013 6:16:47 PM PST by TigersEye (The irresponsible should not be leading the responsible.)
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To: livius

“Strange times.”

Yes.


42 posted on 02/08/2013 6:39:45 PM PST by rockinqsranch (Dems, Libs, Socialists, call 'em what you will, they ALL have fairies livin' in their trees.)
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To: Venturer
If Obama was being updated he must have slept through the updates.

The attack started just after 9 pm local time. There is a six hour time difference. That put the initial attack at just after 3pm in DC.

Little bammy "Skeeter" Hussein didn't sleep through anything.

He either didn't give a damn or Valerie Jarrett ordered him to keep out.

.

43 posted on 02/08/2013 7:11:33 PM PST by TLI ( ITINERIS IMPENDEO VALHALLA)
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To: Kaslin
Graham just demolished the entire White House defense on Benghazi in less than ten minutes of cross-examination.

That's amazing -- has Linda ever done anything like this before? What brought this on? I thought she's normally inclined to just curl up in Hillary's lap and go to sleep.

44 posted on 02/08/2013 7:13:12 PM PST by lentulusgracchus
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To: Tau Food
Obama is never going to tell the whole story. Ever. Period.

That's okay. You don't need a confession to return a guilty verdict on Article III treason charges.

Or execute the convict.

45 posted on 02/08/2013 7:22:24 PM PST by lentulusgracchus
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To: Fresh Wind

I agree. His main job is Fundraiser-in-Chief. I believe he is a figurehead and is not involved in any decision-making.


46 posted on 02/08/2013 7:23:01 PM PST by Fu-fu2
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To: lentulusgracchus

When he was first in the House he showed so sense. In the Senate he fell under the spell of the great maverick and lost his manhood


47 posted on 02/08/2013 7:23:40 PM PST by KC Burke (Plain Conservative opinions and common sense correction for thirteen years. RSC)
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To: Kaslin

Thanks for this thread and hotlinks. Bookmarked.


48 posted on 02/08/2013 7:31:56 PM PST by Graewoulf ((Traitor John Roberts' Commune Obama"care" violates Anti-Trust Laws, AND the U.S. Constitution.))
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To: skeeter

If the mainstreams don’t report it, it’s like it never happened. The world may laugh at us, but out citizens are clueless.


49 posted on 02/08/2013 7:33:36 PM PST by The_Media_never_lie (Actually, they lie when it suits them! The crooked MS media must be defeated any way it can be done!)
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To: RoosterRedux
The President, by his absence--by his refusal to get involved--TOLD OUR FORCES TO STAND DOWN re: the rescue of our Ambassador and SEAL's in Benghazi.

And not just that. Obama fired sky-high the first general officer to lift a finger to try to help those people in Benghazi.

He wanted the guys in Benghazi to go down. He had a corrupt, traitorous deal with someone in the shadows. I think waterboarding Obama would be perfectly reasonable under these circumstances -- because we have a traitor in the White House and need to smoke him out now.

50 posted on 02/08/2013 7:38:13 PM PST by lentulusgracchus
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To: Kaslin

Obama knew precisely what was happening, that is why he distanced himself. Has anyone gotten to the question of who gave the orders to the potential rescuers to stand down, or is that off the table?


51 posted on 02/08/2013 7:48:11 PM PST by Toespi
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To: livius
or he wasn’t there and had been informed but didn’t care enough to follow up on it and then went to bed after his one conversation with Panetta ....

Still doesn't work -- the attack was over well before midnight. The timeline doesn't hold together. What is he telling us -- he went to bed at 5 P.M.? For a rally event midday the next day in Vegas, or 2-3 P.M. Washington time?

This stinks of lies. Obama closed the door on those guys and told everybody not to answer any phones or e-mails or send any help. He cut them off. He did worse than abandon them -- he threw them to the wolves.

52 posted on 02/08/2013 7:49:53 PM PST by lentulusgracchus
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To: rockinqsranch

He did some crazy good lawyering, that’s for sure.


53 posted on 02/08/2013 7:52:15 PM PST by Toespi
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To: lentulusgracchus

Nothing’s going to happen. The media is going to continue to brazenly, openly cover his azz. They know that no one can do a thing about it. They learned a lesson in Rather-gate—all they have to do is ignore what they choose to ignore, and the sheeple will be none the wiser. The sheeple don’t utilise the power of the internet, the world at their fingertips, to inform themselves and control their own destinies, their own government. They use it to see what Kardashian or the flavor of the minute is doing. As long as the only time this invader in the White House speaks to them, it’s to promise them more gibmes, and harangue “the enemy” (their fellow Americans) on their behalf for not wanting to fork over to deadbeats the fruit of their labor, they’re content. The media just shrugs its shoulders and says to those of us who are frustrated at their lack of ethics and fairness, “What are you going to do about it?”


54 posted on 02/08/2013 7:53:04 PM PST by mrsmel (One Who Can See)
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To: RoosterRedux
Keep eyes on the ball......

This is all about the Blind Sheik. This is about Obama building the Caliphate, and rescuing its terrorist leadership from the claims of American justice.

55 posted on 02/08/2013 7:53:29 PM PST by lentulusgracchus
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To: Kaslin

Obama was probably on the phone with his muslim and al-qaeda buddies directing the terrorists attacks and had no time to put on an act like he was trying to stop it.


56 posted on 02/08/2013 7:57:13 PM PST by lwoodham (I am Andrew Breitbart. Don't doubt me on this.)
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; ColdOne; Convert from ECUSA; ...

Thanks Kaslin.


57 posted on 02/08/2013 8:20:11 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Romney would have been worse, if you're a dumb ass.)
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To: SunkenCiv

This traitor Obama makes me want to vomit! What a disgrace he is!


58 posted on 02/08/2013 8:25:20 PM PST by Batman11 (We came for the chicken sandwiches and a Sweet Tea Party broke out!)
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To: Kaslin

What were these people doing there.

The ones that died were CIA, and yet no one asks why they were there.

Why?


59 posted on 02/08/2013 9:02:34 PM PST by Vermont Lt (Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care?)
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To: Kaslin
...worst president ever

Though I haven't lived "forever", he was never qualified to lead this country. He was elected by feel-good leftists and biased blacks, IMO. The rest of us pay the price.

60 posted on 02/08/2013 10:13:09 PM PST by IIntense
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