Trigger-pullers told to ‘stand down’ for Benghazi

| May 6, 2013

I heard this yesterday, but I was waiting to see if witnesses to the attack on the Benghazi consulate were actually going to tell Congress that Special Forces soldiers were told to “stand down” for their planned insertion into that fray. According to CBS News, that was in the testimony today;

The account from Gregory Hicks is in stark contrast to assertions from the Obama administration, which insisted that nobody was ever told to stand down and that all available resources were utilized. Hicks gave private testimony to congressional investigators last month in advance of his upcoming appearance at a congressional hearing Wednesday.

According to excerpts released Monday, Hicks told investigators that SOCAFRICA commander Lt. Col. Gibson and his team were on their way to board a C-130 from Tripoli for Benghazi prior to an attack on a second U.S. compound “when [Col. Gibson] got a phone call from SOCAFRICA which said, ‘you can’t go now, you don’t have the authority to go now.’ And so they missed the flight … They were told not to board the flight, so they missed it.”

Of course, we suspected that from the beginning. All of that blather about there being no time to react, that troops were too far away to have an impact on the battle, blah, blah, blah, was all armchair quarterbacking and outright lies. But, hey, there was an election to win, so what were four lives compared to that?

Also from CBS News is the reaction from acting ambassador to Libya, Greg Hicks who wasn’t at the consulate at the time of the attack. He said that from his vantage point, he thought it was a terrorist attack, too, and he thought that everyone in the State Department knew it was a terrorist attack and that his “jaw hit the floor” when he heard that a YouTube video was blamed for the attack. The video auto-starts;

Thanks to Old Trooper for the link.

Category: Barack Obama/Joe Biden, Terror War

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B Woodman

That would make a nice couple of campaign protest/Republican slogans (that is, if the RINOs are man enough & have balls and a spine):
“Obama lied, Benghazi died.”
“Obama lied, an ambassador died.”

Hey. The DemonRats used it against Shrub.

Nik

It’s just too damn bad that this didn’t come out in time to save us from Obama’s second term.

PintoNag

I don’t see where this would have affected Obama. No one who was bent on voting for Obama would have changed their minds over this information.

OldSoldier54

@2 Nik :

Roger that … big time.

OldSoldier54

@3 PN :

Bent on voting him in, yes, but there were those in the middle who could swing either way … they are the ones who gave him the election, anyway.

Andy

holy crap! this report comes from CBS?

Nik

@6

Yah, I had a bit of doubletake on that one too.

2/17 Air Cav

@6. Yeah, Andy, the co-conspirators (BIG MEDIA)in this cover up can no longer cover their ears, close their eyes, and hum. They served up the incredible pap early on and divorced themselves from tradional journalistic inquiry. Their CEOs and operators were, no doubt, quietly assured that, at worst, well after the election, there might be a flare up. So, as late as a week or so ago, Jay Carney was talking of Benghazi as ‘ancient history’ and John ‘Jungle Stroll with Cameraman” Kerry was promising to get to the bottom of this–only after knowing that certain witnesses were giving up information, at last and would soon do so under oath. Right. At the same time, matters were setting up as an attempt by Republicans to smear obamaman. All of it a load a crap. Dempsey, Rice H. ‘Wide Load’ Clinton, Carney, Kerry–and a helluva lot of quiet actors were all bullshitting the American public.

2/17 Air Cav

@8. Additional.

I should point out, as I have before, that kudos go to Fox News. That outfit, whatever their shortcomings, never gave up on Benghazi.

Lobster

Can we impeach that asshole yet?

Nik

@10

I’ve been considering that prospect and am left with a chilling thought.

President Joseph Biden.

Now if we can get Obama and Joey at the same time, that’d be awesome.

Herbert J Messkit

Much of the Benghazi commentary even from FOX concerns the cover up. Very little about the actions or failure to act of the Obama administration. I would like to know what Warning orders were issued. i.e. Make a tentative plan, initate necessary movement gather resources and capabilities. Did the Secretary of State and President check out early. Yes the Ambassador died early but the others died later. An attack ends when the attacker quits or is defeated. The administration did not know it would go on all night, so how can they justify their apparent inaction on the ambassador’s early death.

DaveO

Two points:

1. Only the POTUS (Obama, or in a situation where Obama can not perform the duty [jokes aside] such as being under sedation for surgery) can authorize troops into another country. Obama, upon learning of the attack, went to bed so he could be rested for a campaign stop in Las Vegas. The POTUS was likely asleep before the last two Americans died.

2. Candy Crowley saved Obama during the debate on foreign policy. Almost no voters heard her correct herself after the debate. If you want to correct future journalistic malpractice, sue the hell out of Crowley. Her actions aren’t covered under the Constitution or any of its amendments. Find a good judge, destroy her, and let the other reporters know they are next.

LostOnThemInterwebs

Must be blatantly true if stations like CBS just have to say “well truth is there better say it now, everyone will know anyway” *sigh*

Athena

This is sickening. Four of our men died waiting for backup that Hitlery and her leash holder Zero told to stand down. Heads should roll for this.

OWB

No surprises so far for anyone who has served or ever read an OPLAN/something similar. Many of us said at the time, “What about the guys who were spring loaded in the ready position?”

Yes, it will all come out eventually. Too many honorable people know the truth, or at least a piece of the complete truth.

A Proud Infidel

Given that the Hildebeast is involved in this, I wonder if people slated to testify will “have accidents and illnesses” like many of those involved with Whitewater during the “Blowjob Willie” years?

Nik

@17

Hildebeast

Nice!

Ex-PH2

If Obama’s impeached, can Biden be far behind? Who sits in the seat if both of them are impeached and kicked out? (Starts with S/oH)

Give it time. The universe they created is coming undone.

What is it Hamlet said? Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.

2/17 Air Cav

@12. What we have, at a minmum, is testimony from Panetta and Clinton from February that establishes that no one talked to ANYONE. Clinton denied having facts. Now, it seems there were many facts known by her. we know that obamaman went to Vegas the following day and that he rec’d a report of the attack but, evidently, went to bed and then to Vegas. This is a humdinger of a developing story with much more to come.

Ex-PH2

You guys do know what the definition is for ‘shitstorm’, right?

It’s when there is so much pressure in the sewers that the manhole cover goes flying up into the air as the water/sewage under extreme pressure explodes upward through the manhole opening.

Hondo

Ex-PH2: that would be the meaning of the term “pool-pah” from “The Book of Bokonon” (Vonnegut, Cat’s Cradle). The term also purportedly translates as “Wrath of God”.

Hopefully those responsible for abandoning our people in Benghazi get to see the meaning of the term “up close and personal” – real soon.

“What did the President know, and when did he know it?”

Nik

@19

If Obama’s impeached, can Biden be far behind?

Maybe. Look at how foolish and inept he shows himself to be in the press. People might sincerely believe he was too stupid to be involved in anything more complicated than a stick or a rock.

Debbie

yes! The rest of the media is picking it up! I’m hopeful it doesn’t go the way to Fast and Furious, where Congress censured Holder and he just keeps on trucking’ like nothing happened.

Common Sense

Actually, it was private testimony to Congressional investigators from last month. The current testimony is scheduled for Wednesday so I’m sure he’ll elaborate.

@6 – Sharyl Attkisson from CBS has been a pit bull about Benghazi since the beginning. She has gone after the truth through unanswered Freedom of Information requests, interviews, Facebook, lists of questions on Twitter, etc. She did an interview with Breitbart the other day where she talks about how she feels alone in this investigation where she had lots of help during the Bush Administration:

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2013/05/02/CBS-News-Atkisson-Benghazi

She probably won’t get it, but she should win the Pulitzer. She, Ed Henry, Jake Tapper, and Lara Logan are the only “real” journalists we have.

COB6

RAAAAAAAAAACISTS!

verm

How about that film maker who was arrested by feds in the middle of the night and is still in jail.

At this point can we not conclude that Obama used the force of govt to strip this man of his rights under false pretense?

Sounds to me like treason.

Devtun

Just so lucky the House and its investigative powers are under Republican control. If Queen Nancy was Speaker, Benghazi scandal would have been buried no matter how many Fox News stories came out. Problem now is to keep up the momentum, the MSM needs to pick up on this and advance the story. Not to optimistic the sympathetic liberal media will do a full court press on their beloved emperor. I guess we’ll see.

USMCE8Ret

Face it people, it’s Bush’s fault people are testifying.

Frankly, I don’t think there is one person in D.C. who has the integrity to see this through. I hope someone proves me wrong… I honesty do.

Mr Wolf

Under certain conditions, the SecDef can authorize in-extremis forces to enter another country. This is one of those times, we were told during this time period. We were ready.

That authorization never came to us.

UpNorth

Can anyone see this scenario playing out? S/oH and the Senate Majority Leader get together after all the testimony is in and it’s established that Baracka did, indeed, watch the whole thing live, and order a stand-down, before he went to bed to rest up for his Vegas trip.
Boehner: Harry, we’ve got him dead to rights, at least on “misdemeanors”, and probably on “high crimes”. What do we do next?
Reid: John, you’re right, you do. But, deep down, do either of us want that assclown, Biden, as POTUS? Being a moron isn’t an impeachable offense, otherwise we’d have had about 112 presidents, not 44.
Boehner: Jeeezus, let’s just forget the whole thing, we’ll have one hearing a month for a half a day for the next 3 years and hope this goes away.

Miss Ladybug

The House could impeach, but would the current Dem-controlled Senate convict? This could drag out unto the 2014 mid-term election cycle and that would be bad for the Dems. We’re already less than a year away from those primaries…

Fatcircles0311

The only way anyone in this shit administration would be held accountable to the willful ignorant self centered Obama voter is if the attack happened on their street and they were personally involved with being inconvenienced. Even then they can just flat out lie like they’ve been doing and suffer zero consequences or accountability. The country is past the tipping point at this stage. Not sure how it’s ever going to be fixed but results and accountability is dead for the majority of voters in our system.

Hack Stone

What difference does this make. It happened almost eight months ago. We nee to let it go and move. All Praise Emporer Barack and Queen Hillary.

Yeah, that was sarcasm.

Twist

Since a Clinton is involved you bet that the IRS will soon be paying a visit to the whistle blowers for an audit.

Hondo

Ex-PH2: my last comment above was intended as a literary joke.

rb325th

@2… Thi story was covered up by the White house with the absolute willing assistance of the MSM prior to the last elecetion. I remember how much Romney was hammered anytime he brought the subject up.
It is only now because we have some brave souls willng to step up and speak the truth is the MSM being forced to listen.
The election was a sham in that the MSM did all that it could to aid the Obama Campaign in burying anything negative about “the One”…. again. Whether it was Benghazi or the real cost of Obamacare, they did their best to shout down the critics.

defendUSA

Forgive me If I am repeating….but WTF is the responsibility of the the new SecDef? Obama lied, Hilary Lied to protect him and her own chances for 2016? God damn it. Somebody needs to be held responsible for this. When Nixon got caught, people didn’t die and he resigned. Boom. These people are caught and what? Nothing??? Can I now call it a fraudulent election by virtue of treasonous acts?

skh.pcola

Biden is a total and consummate fucktard, but he isn’t (I think) a malevolent, evil, Marxist POS like Ozero. Buhraq needed a patsy that wouldn’t ask questions to be his running mate, he got that with Crazy Joe.