November 3, 2013

The administration's refusal to give Congress access to the Benghazi witnesses.

On today's "Fox News Sunday," Lindsay Graham was talking about his threat of blocking all the President's nominees in the Senate until Congress is given access to the witnesses to the Benghazi attack.
CHRIS WALLACE: OK. So, when you and other senators -- because you're not along in this -- asked to talk to the survivors... or to read the interviews that the FBI conducted within hours after the attack... what does the administration say to you?

GRAHAM: They say it's an ongoing criminal investigation, which is stunning. Under that theory, we would not be able to look at 9/11 and to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was prosecuted. He's still not even going to trial....
Under that theory there would not have been Watergate hearings!
GRAHAM: Can you imagine if this was George W. Bush and he told the Congress after 9/11 -- you can't talk to anybody because there's a potential criminal investigation, we're not going to investigate how 9/11 became the failure that it was?

13 comments:

YoungHegelian said...

Isn't just fascinating to see what machinations a whole room full of Ivy League graduates will go through to hide the fact that they fucked up, man, they fucked up bad. The Executive branch straightforwardly stonewalling the Legislative branch? "Pish-posh, we've the best! Screw those hicks & yokels who want to bring us down!"

It's almost like nothing in their past experience ever prepared for that day when one is caught short in public. But these are the finest schools? Oh, how can that be?

The impending collapse of the Obama administration is but an epiphenomenon (to use a good Marxist word) of the collapse of so much else in the world of first world social democracy.

Kirk Parker said...

WTF? Are these people being held hostage, incommunicado, in an undisclosed location? C'mon, who's gonna be the whistle blower???

Drago said...

I think it's "ugly" that the Republicans keep asking to speak to survivors.

It's that kind of ugliness that leads moderate, well educated folk to flock to the transparent, soft-spoken, open to dialogue democrats.

George M. Spencer said...

It's interesting how so very many people really don't grasp what is happening here.

This is the Chicago-ization of America. It's a one-party state, people. Law are for schmucks.

Fandor said...

The American people need to know if the president failed to protect our citizens put in harm's way. Obama works for and is accountable to the American people. We are still a republic, in spite of what he may think.

George M. Spencer said...

Fandor--

It is nice to say what you are saying, and, in theory, I love you for it, but the people on the other side want to take away your liberty. And they're doing it. And getting away with it. I wonder sometimes if this was what it was like in the 1760s

Rusty said...

The rule of law is what we say it is.
You got a problem with that?


The republic is over Fandor.

Levi Starks said...

Imagine there's no constitution,
It's easy if you try....

Gahrie said...

Normally I would call anyone who was worried about the peaceful transfer of power in 2017 a nutcase. But these are far from normal times....

MadisonMan said...

Stonewall Jackson has nothing on these guys.

Carl said...

The requirement of cynical bullshittery and posturing is the main reason you couldn't pay me enough to be a politician. Neither Graham nor his interlocutor, nor anyone in the Administration, nor almost anyone watching this show, believes for one moment there is the slightest shred of real meaning to the "theory" and Graham's rejoinder. Everyone knows what is actually going on is a contest of personal popularity -- the President's against that of the Democratic Senators most vulnerable in 2014. If the former is stronger, the President will tell Graham to go to hell, and he will fold, laws and traditions and everything else notwithstanding. If the latter, the President will back down. Each will fashion some rationalization for why his action is logical and reasonable at the time, and neither will believe a word of it. Nor will anyone else. You wonder why anyone bothers with this Kabuki. I suppose we're so used to it that if a Senator actually spoke from the heart, said just precisely what he thought, the shock would be immense. It'd be as if he farted loudly or spoke candidly of his pleasure in being fellated.

tim maguire said...

I would take a slightly different tack. The Democrats for years have taken the position that terrorism is a law-enforcement matter. Here's a prime example of why that is a self-serving mistake that harms the American people.

Point that out.

Unknown said...

Odd, I thought witnesses had already testified. And more witnesses are also scheduled to testify soon. How soon (or conveniently) we forget...

http://mediamatters.org/research/2013/11/03/cnn-forgets-benghazi-survivors-have-testified-b/196728