“When you are on the ground, you depend on each other — we’re gonna get through this situation. But when you look up and then nothing outside of the stratosphere is coming to help you or rescue you, that’s a bad feeling,” one source said:
On the night of the Benghazi terror attack, special operations put out multiple calls for all available military and other assets to be moved into position to help — but the State Department and White House never gave the military permission to cross into Libya, sources told Fox News.
But, but, I thought the president gave orders to do everything possible?!
And then there’s this:
“They had no plan. They had no contingency plan for if this happens, and that’s the problem this is going to face in the future,” one source said. “They’re dealing with more hostile regions, hostile countries. This attack’s going to happen again.”
And unfortunately, they don’t have much of a learning curve.
[Update a few minutes later]
Only six months late:
Confirmed: Obama’s denial of cross border authority killed 2 and abandoned 30 Americans in Benghazi
Couldn’t have the media discussing it then, though — it might have hurt Obama’s election chances.
These are all right wing lies, the military would never move forces around in a situation like this. They would shelter in place and wait for the proper authorities to handle the protest.
Also, the situation room was being fumagated so President Obama, may he live forever, was unable to get real time information about the protest. It is not like Obama could use it like he did for Newtown or that hurricane in the fat guy’s state. And there wasn’t even anyone in Libya that could, let alone had the capability, to communicate with air support like Navy Seals do everyday all over the world.
Denying permission to help and thus leaving those Americans to dies is utterly reprehensible, but not illegal.
Using extortion and suborning perjury to cover it up is illegal as hell.
So, this could well be the perfect storm; something utterly reprehensible covered up by a slew of felonies.
This makes Watergate (a two bit burglary that Nixon only found out about later) look like small potatoes. (and I’ve always felt that Nixon had to go after what he did, because it was obstruction of justice).
If the Republicans play this right, they can lead off by trotting the survivors out to testify on camera. Start with the facts, but focus on the touchy-feely stuff the left is so fond of; “Please tell us what it felt like to be left to die…” “Please tell, in detail, what it felt like to be left to die…”
Even the lefty MSM isn’t going to pass up on teary emotional testimony, especially if the Republicans start with the best looking of the survivors first. (yes, the MSM, and the majority of the general public, is that shallow).
I also have to wonder what Biden knows. He’s the head of the national security council, so maybe he was in the loop. If so, he’s in an interesting situation; he’s got to know he doesn’t stand a chance in a 2016 run for the white house, and he’s run for president several times… but if he knows something that’ll help impeach Obama, say hello to President Joe Biden. (Which would be the result of a conviction anyway, unless Biden committed crimes too)
Pass the popcorn.
We keep hearing from anonymous sources talking to Fox News that no military units were moved. Here’s what I would like to know – what specific military unit was ready to move but didn’t? I mean, these units have names and numbers. So why can’t anybody say that the 101st Fast Acting Response Team (or whatever unit) didn’t move?
I suspect these anonymous sources can’t say because they don’t know what was available. I also suspect that they won’t say because they’re afraid somebody will commit journalism and call that unit’s PAO (that’s “Public Affairs Officers” for you civilian types) to ask what the unit was up to on the night in question.
It would, after all, be embarrassing for the Fox News report to end with a stand-up from the PAO saying “we weren’t available that night.”
You may not be seeing specific military units identified that could have helped, but I have been. Maybe you should look beyond Fox News (which I don’t watch, as a rule) and try reading some milbloggers.
Heretic! Thou shall have no sources but those approved. I don’t care what the bible says about a multitude of councilors. What do they know? When did they know it? No war for oil. No oil for babies. Only we are sane, so shut up.
We just carry the signs and forget to shower because we’re better than you.
Was that too thick?
Chris,
3 or 4 months ago, when the State Dept was still denying a request for help ever came in, the DoD said a Spec Ops team WAS available in Italy. Here’s something from CBS, an outlet not known for bucking against this WH, so perhaps you’ll believe them over the ‘kooks’ and ‘kranks’ at Fox.
The report does what I expect CBS to do, tell us WHY the response team couldn’t / shouldn’t go in there. BUT you were looking for a name. It’s in that story.
McGehee – throw me a bone – what milbloggers and what units?
Der Schtumpy – From the article, “But U.S. officials say it did not arrive in Sicily until after the attack was over.” That means it was sent from wherever it was to be in a position to help, but by the time it got there no help was needed. That’s exactly the opposite of Rand’s assertions.
That’s exactly the opposite of Rand’s assertions.
I read Rand as noting “the President gave orders to do everything possible.” One unit mentioned in the CBS report got the Sigonella after the attack. A previous CBS report said some units were sent from Tripoli, and mentioned that while another Special Forces unit was being sent to Sigonella, the airbase had other units that might have been utilized.
Further, why not engage allies in the region for assistance? Italy has military units at the base as well. Wouldn’t engaging allies and asking for support be, “doing everything possible?”, which is Rand’s assertion. And yes, engaging allies would require the Secretary of State, not the Defense Secretary.
Perhaps you can tell us how you get a different interpretation of Rand’s assertion?
Leland – Souda Bay and Sigonella, mentioned in the CBS link, don’t have combat units based there. I checked, unlike CBS’s source. Aviano is all the way up in Northern Italy, out of the range of the F-16s based there.
What units that were available and useful were sent. They didn’t “cross into Libya” because by the time they were anywhere near Libya the attack was over. Obama didn’t give “cross-border authority” because he wasn’t asked for it. He wasn’t asked for it because it wasn’t needed.
How about the Sec Def, Mr. Panetta, who as much as said that military forces weren’t committed for fear of both military casualties (of our people) and civilian casualties?
At least Mr. Panetta had the courage to admit that people were fearful. The C-in-C and his Sec State (and the entire Liberal/Left wing of the Blogosphere) weren’t going to admit to anything.
by the time they were anywhere near Libya the attack was over
The attack that lasted for most of a day???
You want me to do your critical thinking for you? Let’s see some money first.
Hey Admiral, did you know NASA has a PAO, or do you think only military units have such things?
And more to Der Schtumpy; official record has Defense Secretary Panetta mobilizing units to Sigonella roughly 3 hours after the attack began. Since that is not in contention, it would be embarrassing for one of those unit’s PAO to standup and say “we weren’t available” when the order came for them to mobilize.
Even the lefty MSM isn’t going to pass up on teary emotional testimony
I wouldn’t bet on that.
Also, I wouldn’t bet on Republicans having the stones to pursue the investigation with determination.
I hope I’m wrong.
It is so sad that so many of us have to keep hoping we are wrong.
Benghazi is so far up the ladder of crimes and misdemeanors that it’s incredible the media hasn’t gone all in. But then, this isn’t the only example. There are too many to list.
Fox interviews special forces member, he is clearly part of a Tea Party plot with Fawx newz to discredit the President but let’s see what he says anyway,
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/04/30/special-ops-benghazi-whistleblower-tells-fox-news-government-could-have/
“The C-110 is a 40-man Special Ops force capable of rapid response and deployment specifically trained for incidents like last year’s attack in Benghazi. During the night of the Sept. 11, 2012, attack in Libya, in which U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed in Libya, the C-110 were training in Croatia, just 3 ½ hours away.
“We had the ability to load out, get on birds and fly there, at a minimum stage,” the operator told Fox News. “C-110 had the ability to be there, in my opinion, in a matter of about four hours…four to six hours.””
We have military assets all over the freaking globe. Someone just had to give the order for them to respond. But why would Obama do anything if he thought everything was over with the death of our ambassador? Obama likely thought that was the worst that could happen and went to bed.
Of course we know now, that there was a sustained series of attacks throughout the night. During that period of time, support could have arrived from any number of military assets scattered throughout the region and Europe.
Real time information was flowing in from an entire alphabet soup of government and military agencies just like what happens in every other photo op Obama has during all other emergencies. Either Obama watched it all and didn’t care or he actually did go to bed early and we need to know if he left orders not to be woken up.
CBS News released a timeline of the Benghazi attack prior to the election. Per that timeline, a “Special Forces unit in Europe” was ordered to move. This order was issued by Panetta between midnight and 2 AM Benghazi time.
Dr. Google tells me that Zagreb Croatia to Benghazi is 834 nautical miles. Dr. Google tells me that a C-130 has a top airspeed of 300 knots. Assuming any delay at all climbing and landing, that’s a 3-hour flight.
So, yes, if C-110 was sitting near their plane, and if it was fueled and ready to go, and if they had local maps of Benghazi and the other details you’d want before landing in a hostile city in the middle of the night, and if they got wheels up at midnight, they’d be at Benghazi airport at 3 AM.
That’s an hour and a half after the Embassy’s QRT got to the airport.
If C-110 gets wheels up at 2 AM, they could be landing at 5 AM – about the time that the QRT gets to the annex.
If C-110 gets the order to go at 2 AM, and takes even an hour to get wheels up, they’re in Benghazi at 6 AM – in time to greet the Americans evacuating the annex.
If C-110 takes two hours to get wheels up, they’re in Benghazi at 7 AM – which is when the Americans get on the first plane to go to Tripoli.
No, what really happened is this – C-110 got the call at 2 AM, and took three or four hours to get wheels up. They were out in the field somewhere doing training, not sitting in a barracks on alert. Since they didn’t have good intel on Benghazi, they went to Sigonella as a staging area – arriving after all the shooting was over.
As usual Chris, you offer unsubstantiated conjecture to meet your bias. We aren’t the Greek air force (go to Hellinikon and see the difference side by side.)
We have assets around the world, not just ready on tarmacs, but orbiting constantly in various locations. The fact that the laser targeting was ready is all you need to know. They were murdered by Barack.
Mr. Anthony:
When are you going to realize that this president simply cannot do wrong? He could have phoned the consulate in Benghazi from a pay phone in Penn Station in front of the White House press corps and said “Eff you all, die,” and no one would care. He and his buddy Kermit Gosset could abort, roast, and eat a white baby in the Rose Garden on live national TV and that would be okay, too. He could order Christians marched into concentration camps and gassed and their remains ground into homosexual aphrodisiac powder and people right here on this blog would be fine with it.
Mr. Anthony: in case you haven’t noticed, President Barack Hussein Obama is black. That’s black. Black, black, black, black, black, blackety Black Black BLACK. And that means that not only is every thing he says and does 100% correct, legal, and righteous, but that you and anyone else who criticizes him BE A RACISS.
Because 300 years of slavery.
So, while I admire your search for truth on the Benghazi affair, please stop seeking it. It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters. The true believers who voted for and support this nebbisch are not going to let AMERICA’S FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN PRESIDENT HIS EXCELLENCY THE RIGHT REVERAND BARACK X. OBAMA, JR. (pbuh) go down in history as anything other than the greatest leader of all time no matter how horrible he is.
He’s the Messiah. The media said it, the American people believe it, and that settles it.
I sorry. I be raciss.
C-110 got the call at 2 AM, and took three or four hours to get wheels up. They were out in the field somewhere doing training, not sitting in a barracks on alert. Since they didn’t have good intel on Benghazi, they went to Sigonella as a staging area – arriving after all the shooting was over.
So by your timeline Admiral, Panetta learns of the event and tells Obama at 5pm (11pm Benghazi). Despite previous warnings of an attack by the Ambassador, the date being September 11th, and an attack occurring; neither Obama nor Panetta orders SFOC to stage for another 3 hours? And then it takes 3 more hours for a unit to move, so now 6 hours since Obama and Panetta learned of the attack; no intelligence could be gathered and sent along to the unit in route?
Go back to the latest story: They had no plan. They had no contingency plan for if this happens This despite warnings days in advance and the date being September 11th. However, there seemed to be a quick plan to blame everything on a spontaneous attack that never occurred and a video that had nothing to do with the death of an US Ambassador.
It’s worth noting that you could have that ready for them by the time they landed in Benghazi. The “IFs” you mentioned aren’t particularly difficult for a superpower to achieve. Past that, you asked for a ready military unit, you got it.
Another thing here is Chris’s amazing power of hindsight. Somehow we would have known ahead of time, that the embassy staff would be evacuated by a certain time (here, 6am on September 12). But if that didn’t work, say because the people were intercepted on the way to the airport, what plans did they have in place? The “blame things on a crazy filmmaker” plan doesn’t provide assistance.