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In the wake of the September terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, which left Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead, officials launched an independent inquiry, which took three months to scrutinize not only the violence, but the conditions that led to the deadly outcome.
Last night, as Rachel noted on the air, the panel's findings were released to the public, and showed sharp criticism of the State Department for poor security decisions, including insufficient safety upgrades, a lack of qualified security personnel, an overreliance on untested local militias, and a failure to prepare for dangerous contingencies.
"Systemic failures and leadership and management deficiencies at senior levels within two bureaus," the report said, resulted in security "that was inadequate for Benghazi and grossly inadequate to deal with the attack that took place."
Looking ahead, the investigators proposed 29 specific actions the State Department should take to prevent similar tragedies in the future, and as of last night, each of the panel's recommendations will be adopted.
In response to the panel's findings, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in a letter to Congress that she was accepting all 29 of the panel's recommendations, five of which are classified. "To fully honor those we lost, we must better protect those still serving to advance our nation's vital interests and values overseas," Mrs. Clinton said in the letter. She is already taking specific steps to correct the problems, according to officials.
They say the State Department is asking permission from Congress to transfer more than $1.3 billion from contingency funds that had been allocated for spending in Iraq. This includes $553 million for hundreds of additional Marine security guards worldwide; $130 million for diplomatic security personnel; and $691 million for improving security at installations abroad.
The entirety of the 39-page, unclassified version of the report is available online here (pdf). A longer, classified version of the report was sent to Congress yesterday, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a closed hearing today to discuss its findings with retired diplomat Thomas R. Pickering and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, both whom helped write the Benghazi report.
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I predict Sec. Clinton will have an ingrown toenail and be unable to testify.
I predict you'll eventually get over it and find some other non-issue to whine about.
I predict that neither of those things will happen and that FOX will suddenly find this waaaaaay more important than talking about gun control and by tomorrow will be like "NRA who?"
Here you go Blanks ...here's some other Embassy related stuff to get your pantyhose in a knot about
Seven U.S. Embassies And Consulates Were Attacked Under George W. Bush
2002: U.S. Consulate In Karachi, Pakistan, Attacked; 10 Killed, 51 Injured.
2004: U.S. Embassy Bombed In Uzbekistan.
2004: Gunmen Stormed U.S. Consulate In Saudi Arabia.
2006: Armed Men Attacked U.S. Embassy In Syria.
2007: Grenade Launched Into U.S. Embassy In Athens. From The New York Times:
2008: Rioters Set Fire To U.S. Embassy In Serbia.
2008: Ten People Killed In Bombings At U.S. Embassy In Yemen.
CARTER
1979: Iranians Seized Hostages After Storming U.S. Embassy In Tehran.
1979: Pakistanis Attacked And Burned U.S. Embassy In Islamabad.
1979: U.S. Embassy In Tripoli Was Attacked And Burned.
REAGAN
1983: Bomb Blast At U.S. Embassy In Beirut Killed More Than 60, Including 17 Americans.
1983, bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon:
1983: Car Bomb Damaged U.S. Embassy In Kuwait.
1987: Car Bomb Exploded Outside U.S. Embassy In Italy.
GEORGE H.W. BUSH
1990: Palestinian Guerrillas Attempted To Attack U.S. Embassy In Tel Aviv. From a June 21, 1990, New York Times article:
CLINTON
1998: Terrorist Bombs Near U.S. Embassies In Kenya, Tanzania Injured More Than 1,000 And Killed More Than 60, Including Eight Americans. From an August 7, 1998, Associated Press article:
http://mediamatters.org/research/2012/09/14/krauthammer-whitewashes-bushs-history-to-bash-o/189890
So the fact that the State Department failed and lives were lost is a non issue?
Let me guess you want to ban guns but think abortions, which kill more innocent babies, are ok?
In all those how many orders were given to let the Ambassador die?
Right because you know whats best for women but doctors and women aren't smart enough to know whats best for women. Gotcha, the usual conservative non think and whine post.
99% of the time it's what's more convient for women has nothing to do with their health.
I am sick it Abortions being label as "Womens Healthcare"
If there is a medical condition then maybe abort, but because you don't want a baby? No that is a life we are talking about not just a blob of nothing.
Ps. what makes you think I am a conservative just because I oppose abortion?
Shooter That's offensive. No one "Gave Orders" to let the Ambassador die. In fact if anything he took the risk himself because that was the kind of guy he was.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/benghazi-panel-presents-findings-to-lawmakers-makes-recommendations/2012/12/18/9ada6032-495c-11e2-b6f0-e851e741d196_story_1.html
@smrt
if you think that having an abortion is a matter of "Convenience" then you are obviously as sexist as you are ignorant
I guess all those other deaths aren't worth the life of 1 US ambassador.
@Dragoon...
Nope not sexist at all.. Abortions effect more than just women and the fact of the matter is most women do it because they accidentally got pregnant.
The reasons most frequently cited were that having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); that she could not afford a baby now (73%); and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%). Nearly four in 10 women said they had completed their childbearing, and almost one-third were not ready to have a child. Fewer than 1% said their parents’ or partners’ desire for them to have an abortion was the most important reason. Younger women often reported that they were unprepared for the transition to motherhood, while older women regularly cited their responsibility to dependents
@smrt
Ok I will love to have this debate with you but this is not the thread to do it in.
When will the State Department investigate the multitude of systematic failures of the U.S. Congress?
"Give me a
fast ship$1.3 billion from contingency funds, for I intend to go in harm's way."John Paul JonesHillary Rodam Clinton.War is the failure of diplomacy. Transfer some of that DOD money to Foggy Bottom.
"Jaw jaw is better than war war." -Winston Churchill
I have a a couple of real good friends at State and they always told me that through the whole of Iraq one of the biggest problems they faced was that the regular US military security had been cut back and replaced with contractors.
How about we just give the job back to the people who should be doing it and get rid of Blackwater...or is it XE...oh wait excuse me they are "Academi LLC now
In any case this is what you get for hiring "Rent-a-cop's"
As someone who has worked in the Federal Government, I can tell you the federal employees who actually do the work don't like contractors either. I can remember one top "manager" telling us at an all hands meeting that he needed to move more federal employees out of the federal building to remote locations because he needed more room for "his employees" - contractors!
Federal employees who do the work try to tell senior management what the real issues are - contractors tell senior management what they want to hear - after all that is what they are being paid to do! So you know who senior management listens to?
Maybe the US government should:
1) Stop meddling in the affairs of other sovereign nations - just because we want it our way!
2) Stop supporting these vicious dictators simply because WE get what WE want!
3) Bring back the Marines - they used to guard and protect - and unlike Blackwater and the rest of those trolls - they at least have some order and accountability!
Part of the problem is that far too many Americans don't realize the dirt that "our government" does in our name, it's part of the reason why WE as a nation aren't liked. I mean if you were born say in Pakistan and a drone strike killed your family, or you were born in Egypt under the Mubarak administration and had had family members killed - I'm sure that you would understand how the people of these nations feel! Take your heads out of the sand people, stop pretending that everything "our government" does is either 1) altruistic or 2) in the best interests of the people of those nations! Hell, WE aren't doing the best thing for the people right here in America!
Zora,
You are so right.
When will we start to see ourselves as other nations see us?
Thank you.
This may be a blemish on Sec. Clinton's otherwise stellar record as Secretary of State. However, the panel's report seems to have glossed over Ambassador Susan Rice's complicity in all these mistakes and lapses, merely because she was in New York, at the UN, with no role in embassy security. Typical liberal bias, I guess. ;-}
Always nice to have a further demonstration of how ignorant ignorance has to be, to be one of you fools.
Mommy wants her computer back, little boy, and your sheep need "servicing."
And just who was it who insisted on the cuts to the security budget?
"House Republicans cut the administration’s request for embassy security funding by $128 million in fiscal 2011 and $331 million in fiscal 2012....Last year, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that Republicans’ proposed cuts to her department would be “detrimental to America’s national security” — a charge Republicans rejected.
Ryan, Issa and other House Republicans voted for an amendment in 2009 to cut $1.2 billion from State operations, including funds for 300 more diplomatic security positions. Under Ryan’s budget, non-defense discretionary spending, which includes State Department funding, would be slashed nearly 20 percent in 2014, which would translate to more than $400 million in additional cuts to embassy security"
Now would the right wing whacknuts trolling this site STFU.
The ironic thing is, most of the trolls on this site, actually know this. But like most Republicans, the just choose to acknowledge it as the truth, well probably because stuff like this never aired on Fox News.
But Republican = Strong on Defense.
And by Defense, they mean Offense - in that they will attack before they are attacked. They subscribe to the old football adage "The best defense is a good offense". Why beef up security in Libya when they could use the ambassador's death to attack Iran/China/Russia/Canada/Mexico/India/Greece?
It is a diversion to shift the blame to budgetary issues. A good manager adapts to the realality of budgeted amounts vs requirements. The commission recognizes this, but it also states managers were blinded by it. Decisions were based on budgets rather than safety. Perhaps a new mindset is needed. Work with what you have and adjust accordingly, considering risks.
Interestingly, the report also blew a hole in the admins position that the riot stemmed from a stupid video. So much for the admin's creditability and conservative over reaching. Rule #1 : In a crisis, say as little as possible until facts unfold.
The commission also stated that the lack of funds directly contributed to the lack of defenses for the consulate.
Which is what happens when you have to "adjust to the realities" and "adjust accordingly, considering the risks." That's exactly what happened and it lead to people being killed.
And again this is a made up statement not based on the report.
"Systemic failures and leadership and management deficiencies at senior levels ..."
Sounds like they're describing 9-11!
When I read that report, I was struck about how many of the same old things appeared in it that I have read in other reports on government agencies, the primary one being that senior staff and the politicos are "disconnected" from the people on the ground actually doing the work.
The people on the ground at Benghazi were trying as hard as they could to "secure" their offices, even going to "nontraditional methods" to get security upgrades while senior staff was pretty much "ignoring" their security concerns because senior staff didn't consider them all that "important" - they were too busy looking for what would "enhance" their own careers.
That same theme has come through other reports on government failures in the past - senior staff responds to "political concerns" and ignores what the people on the ground doing the actual work are telling them.
Is the State Department going to fix these issues? Yep, on paper, but nothing real will come out of it as long as the people in senior positions are looking out for how they can gain even more political power and glory for themselves rather than doing what is right for their employees and the people of this country.
I'm thinking perhaps McCain was right in denying Susan Rice the Secretary of State post - it is better to bring in someone from outside rather than to reward one of these senior staff/politico "climbers".
How is Ambassador Stevens not a senior staff member? Or not a BOOT ON THE GROUND? Budget cuts were put through , if they did not have the proper security personnel , then they should not have traveled to the compound until they secured such a detail
Who are the people from the PDF looking for political gain ?
The Libyan gov is still in shambles , they are traveling to what is basically tribal areas , the only security they had was exactly what they had with them , and the supposed security that was already there , exactly how is all that Rices fault ? And how does that make McCain right?
He's a politico - meaning he talks to "important" people who tell him what he wants to hear. Ambassadors are "figureheads" - they do the "make nice" stuff in an area - they are not responsible and usually don't know about the day to day issues. These are handled by "staff" and only come to his attention when his intervention is needed.
Do you think ANY politico knows about all the stuff that is going on in his agency???? The Secretaries are there to do the high level schmoozing - NOT to do the day to day work. They only get involved in Agency "issues" when it is brought to their attention because either it will make him look good or it will make him look bad. You REALLY need to find out how your government works!!
So he was NOT one of the people who should have been monitoring all the incidents and who should know more about what is going on locally than he does. What is sad that even the day to day workers were anything but temporaries, so they probably didn't have the greatest grasp of what was going on either.
Read the report - he was in Benghazi "visiting" - he wasn't "stationed" there. And he made really BAD mistakes in ignoring what was going on in the area - probably because his Libyan buddies were telling him they had control - and he didn't vociferously fight for security improvements when he could have.
Rice was one of those "politicos" who ignored what the people on the ground were telling her - she had her eyes on bigger prizes - she may not have been directly responsible for this incident but she is equally responsible as all the other senior staff for the "disconnect" between the people on the ground and senior staffr/politico members.
I don't think McCain's motives were honorable, but I do give him credit for stopping an agency "climber" from being rewarded for considering her ambitions more important than the needs of her country.
STFU, oncearepublican, until you get a brain transplant. Your old Republican one still has "b.s. from before" in it.
I will refer you to my comments further down , your the one who has not read the report , Stevens was no desk jokey , he risked his life to do his job, and paid the price
Ambassador Stevens personified the U.S. commitment to a free and democratic Libya. His knowledge of Arabic, his ability to move in all sectors of the population, and his wide circle of friends, particularly in Benghazi, marked him as an exceptional practitioner of modern diplomacy. The U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi, established in November 2011, was the successor to his highly successful endeavor as Special Envoy to the rebel-led government that eventually toppled Muammar Qaddafi in fall 2011. The Special Mission bolstered U.S. support for Libya's democratic transition through engagement with eastern Libya, the birthplace of the revolt against Qaddafi and a regional power center.
The only name you come up with the is Rice
SECRETARIES? I assume you are talking about Clinton , who would expect her or Rice to be ON THE GROUND ? Your talking in circles , you did not answer my questions , and are full of it, as TC points out
Sigh,
Until you and TC learn a little bit about what jobs the people in your government do, you aren't making much sense, no matter how "loyal" you are to your President.
I shouldn't be surprised but it does always amaze me that the people in this country have no idea what goes on in government agencies.
Reread the report! When was the last time Stevens was in Benghazi before this September trip? BTW, don't you recognize "boilerplate" when you see it?
Go LOOK UP what ambassadors do - it might surprise you. Then go look up what people in the State Department do - that will surprise you too!
This has NOTHING to do with my politics - it has everything to do with my understanding how the government actually works - it was something I had to understand in my old Fed job.
And QUIT being so polarized!! GO LEARN something!!
Go screw yourself gop punk , your the one claiming crazy McCain is all so wonderful , me and TC slam Obama all the time when he has it coming , wtf does obama have to do with the death of Stevens moron? We do not need you CON stooges in the dem party , that is for sure
First off, history has shown that McCain is never right. He went after Susan Rice, because she called him out once for his stupidity. I do however, agree with you on the senior staff ignoring their employees and the people of this country. Gov't is all about who you know, how much you contribute, and how to keep rising in the ranks for more power and more money. Meanwhile, the real people doing the work, get demonized and called lazy, do nothings. That our pensions are too high. People devote more than 30 years of their lives and all they get is contempt from all sides. It's like being a teacher. These used to be valued positions. Now we are all scorned for wanting better pay.
FROM PDF LINK
February 17 militia ( That is the name of Libyan security they hired ) had proven effective in responding to improvised explosive device (IED) attacks on the Special Mission in April and June 2012, there were some troubling indicators of its reliability in the months and weeks preceding the September attacks. At the time of Ambassador Stevens' visit, February 17 militia members had stopped accompanying Special Mission vehicle movements in protest over salary and working hours.
UNCLASSIFIED - 6 - UNCLASSIFIED
Ambassador Stevens and Benghazi-based DS agents had taken the 9/11 anniversary into account and decided to hold all meetings on-compound on September 11.
The Board found that Ambassador Stevens made the decision to travel to Benghazi independently of Washington, per standard practice.
Plans for the Ambassador's trip provided for minimal close protection security support and were not shared thoroughly with the Embassy's country team, who were not fully aware of planned movements off compound. The Ambassador did not see a direct threat of an attack of this nature and scale on the U.S. Mission in the overall negative trendline of security incidents from spring to summer 2012. His status as the leading U.S. government advocate on Libya policy, and his expertise on Benghazi in particular, caused Washington to give unusual deference to his judgments.
Communication, cooperation, and coordination among Washington, Tripoli, and Benghazi functioned collegially at the working-level but were constrained by a lack of transparency, responsiveness, and leadership at the senior levels. Among various Department bureaus and personnel in the field, there appeared to be very real confusion over who, ultimately, was responsible and empowered to make decisions based on both policy and security considerations.
1st off , the gop can not get basic info correct , it is a SPECIAL MISSION COMPOUND , not an embassy
Libyan security guards do not want to work at GOP minimum wal mart wages , trying to stop real bombs and bullets , what a shocker ???
Also , What never seems to be mentioned , Ambassador Stevens is the smartest guy on the ground , and is in charge of KNOWING where to go and how safe it is , yet people want to blame Obama , Hillary and Rice any way
Then on the last paragraph , the one person most responsible for all that , is The Ambassador , and his head of security
Well how nice. The independent panel slammed the State Department and the result is MORE money to protect the ambassadors. Soooo...the GOP voted against more money, a tragedy occurred and NOW they will be to embarrassed to vote against the 'contingency' money but will still race towards the microphones to 'slam' the State Department. Great. Of course, no word on Congress' complicity in the whole mess. No word on their Senate Resolution that said the same thing Rice said http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/12/susan-rices-senate-opponents-voted-for-resolution-on-benghazi-protests/265890/ Just bad bad Hillary. Typical.
The slam on the State Department is really no surprise. However, Congress has dirty hands as well. Thank you John Kerry for pointing that out this morning during the public hearings about the subject.
Of course... Fox News has gone into over-drive about this. What a bunch of frickin losers.