Darrell Issa and Jason Chaffetz send another letter to Hillary

On the heels of a classified cable provided to Catherine Herridge of Fox News that shows Christopher Stevens issued a cry for help to Hillary Clinton's office on August 16th that was ultimately ignored, Foreign Policy has come into possession of two damning letters for the State Department, obtained from the consulate. House Oversight Committee chairman Darrell Issa and Rep. Jason Chaffetz have taken notice and are demanding answers from Clinton.

Via FP:

One letter, written on Sept. 11 and addressed to Mohamed Obeidi, the head of the Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs' office in Benghazi, reads:

"Finally, early this morning at 0643, September 11, 2012, one of our diligent guards made a troubling report. Near our main gate, a member of the police force was seen in the upper level of a building across from our compound. It is reported that this person was photographing the inside of the U.S. special mission and furthermore that this person was part of the police unit sent to protect the mission. The police car stationed where this event occurred was number 322."

The account accords with a message written by Smith, the IT officer who was killed in the assault, on a gaming forum on Sept. 11. "Assuming we don't die tonight. We saw one of our ‘police' that guard the compound taking pictures," he wrote hours before the assault.

A potential bold red flag is raised about Obeidi a little later in the article:

Obeidi, the Libyan official named on one of the printouts, said he had not received any such letter, adding, "I did not even know that the U.S. ambassador was visiting Benghazi." However, a spokesman for the Benghazi police confirmed that the ministry had notified the police of the ambassador's visit. "We did not receive that letter from the U.S. consulate. We received a letter from Ministry of Foreign Affairs Benghazi asking for additional security measures around consulate during visit of the ambassador. And the police provided all extra security which was asked for," the spokesman said.

So Obeidi is essentially pleading total ignorance when it comes to being aware that Stevens was even in  Benghazi while a spokesman for the police says his office was made aware. Perhaps the claim that Obeidi never saw one of the documents that mentioned him by name could be believed (because they were found in the consulate) but his not knowing that Stevens was in Benghazi strains credulity. Even if he is to be believed about that, he should have known, which still points to the likely infiltration of security forces.

Here is an excerpt from the letter to Clinton from Issa and Chaffetz:

These documents paint a disturbing picture indicating that elements of the Libyan government might have been complicit in the September 11, 2012, attack on the compound and the murder of four Americans. It also reiterates the fact that the U.S. government may have had evidence indicating that the attack was not a spontaneous event but rather a preplanned terrorist attack that included prior surveillance of the compound as a target.

Given the location where they were found, these documents appear to be genuine and support a growing body of evidence indicating that the Obama Administration has tried to withhold pertinent facts about the 9/11 anniversary attack from Congress and the American people.

Issa and Chaffetz conclude the letter with a demand for answers about why the State Department said there were no indications that anything was wrong at the consulate at all on 9/11/12. Pointing to an October 9, 2012 State Department briefing in which it was alleged that "Everything was calm at 8:30 p.m." the Oversight Committee members rightfully raise concerns that the documents recovered at the scene by FP belie that claim.

They want answers by November 8th.

To view the two documents recovered by FP, click here and scroll to page 4.

Did CNN drop conservative talk show host Dana Loesch for comments about Huma Abdein?

Dana Loesch is a conservative radio talk show host based in St. Louis. Over the last year, she was seen quite a bit on CNN as a conservative counter-balance. Since August, Loesch has been absent from the CNN set. Matt Gertz, at the far left, George Soros-funded Media Matters thinks it has something to dow with Loesch's comments about Huma Abedin, not on CNN but on her own radio show.

Via Media Matters:

In mid-July, shortly before her most recent appearance on CNN, Loesch began using her radio show to promote conspiratorial claims that State Department official Huma Abedin has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. At the same time, CNN co-workers Wolf Blitzer and Anderson Cooper were dismissing such charges as "questionable," "outrageous," and "McCarthy-like." Blitzer said that Rep. Michele Bachmann, who had pressed the issue, "does owe Huma -- who I know well -- an apology."

An August 21 CNN.com article describes Loesch as a "conservative radio host," but does not mention her role as a CNN contributor. The same day, CNN's Piers Morgan referenced Loesch on his program without saying that she works for the network.

As has proven to be the case with virtually ever defender of Abedin, the issue is not even open for discussion. There's a very simple reason for that. Her defenders cannot defend the irrefutable facts about her distinct familial connections to the Muslim Brotherhood and an Al-Qaeda financier.

On another note, if CNN has let Loesch go for comments she made about Abedin on her own radio show, that might help explain why Blitzer and Cooper went out of their way to defend Abedin - job preservation appears to be a bit of concern relative to that issue. Perhaps it was better to go overboard defending Abedin than to say nothing.

The Power of the Press: Local Reporter causes Obama Benghazi trouble

The mainstream media has just been handed a teachable moment. Back on October 26th, a reporter named Kyle Clarke at NBC 9 in Denver had an interview with Barack Obama and asked him three rather pointed questions about Benghazi while Brian Williams was relaxing in the time share he has somewhere inside Obama's... uh, never mind.

Anyway, though Clarke didn't really get any of his questions answered by Obama, the president's responses have captured the attention of the House Armed Services Committee, chaired by Rep. Buck McKeon.

Via Armed Services Committee:

October 29, 2012
The President
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President:

I noted with interest your interview with Kyle Clark on October 26th, in which you stated, in reference to whether or not any requests for help from U.S. personnel under attack in Benghazi were denied, “Well, we are finding out exactly what happened. I can tell you, as I've said over the last couple of months since this happened, the minute I found out what was happening, I gave three very clear directives. Number one, make sure that we are securing our personnel and doing whatever we need to.” (Emphasis added.) Although this response did not specifically answer the reporter’s question, your first directive would appear to involve potential actions by the U.S. military. Since you personally provided this directive, I have a series of additional questions that I am confident you can answer in advance of the conclusion of any formal investigation.

There appears to be a discrepancy between your directive and the actions taken by the Department of Defense. As we are painfully aware, despite the fact that the military had resources in the area, the military did not deploy any assets to secure U.S. personnel in Benghazi during the hours the consulate and the annex were under attack. I find it implausible that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Commander of U.S. Africa Command, and the Commander of U.S. European Command would have ignored a direct order from the Commander in Chief. Therefore, could you please clarify:

•To whom did you issue this first directive and how was this directive communicated to the military and other agencies – verbally or in writing?
• At any time on September 11, 2012, did you specifically direct the military to move available assets into Libya to ensure the safety of U.S. personnel in Benghazi? If so, which assets did you order to Libya?
• At any time on September 11, 2012, other than ISR assets, did you provide the authority for the military to take any and all necessary measures to secure U.S. personnel, including specifically the authority to enter Libyan airspace?
• Did you have any communication with the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or any Commanders of regional Combatant Commands regarding military support to U.S. personnel in Benghazi on September 11th? If so, could you please describe any recommendations provided to you regarding available military support and any orders you gave to them?

Thank you for your prompt attention to these matters. Members of the Committee on Armed Services are keenly concerned that any breakdown in communication that may have occurred not be repeated. Given your stated interest in transparency and sharing all relevant information with the American people and the families of our fallen, I am hopeful you can promptly address these questions.

Respectfully,

Howard P. “Buck” McKeon
Chairman

Here is a real journalist, Kyle Clarke, in the interview that prompted this letter from McKeon:



Here is a pathetic example of a man masquerading as a journalist, Brian Williams, bowing to Obama in 2009:



Time to start a campaign to have Brian Williams and Kyle Clarke switch jobs. No, wait. Clarke should get Williams' job and Williams should be a gopher at NBC 9 (no disrespect to gophers intended).

h/t GWP