Issa back on Benghazi kick

After four months of silence, the House Oversight Chair will prod administration again on the Libya attacks

Published September 19, 2013 1:49PM (EDT)

After four months of quiet on the subject, it seemed Darrell Issa and fellow GOP Congress members had finally let off on politicking about the deadly attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. But the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee isn't done yet.

As Politico reported Thursday:

Issa’s House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will basically investigate the independent investigation by the Accountability Review Board. The ARB released a December report detailing the Obama administration’s response to the attacks, calling for tighter security at many embassies but stopping short of laying blame on senior officials in the State Department.

[On Thursday] Lawmakers will hear from two key witnesses who wrote the ARB report, former Ambassador Thomas Pickering and retired Adm. Mike Mullen. Their report has come under fire from Republicans, who say key witnesses weren’t interviewed.

... Issa said he thinks Thursday’s hearing will make clear that Clinton mishandled security at the Benghazi Consulate.
“Undersecretary [for Management Patrick] Kennedy at a minimum was informed, knew, but failed to provide a reasonable level of security, and as we now know, he — in consultation with Secretary Clinton — made the decision to continue that facility in spite of the excess danger and insufficient security,” Issa told POLITICO.


By Natasha Lennard

Natasha Lennard is an assistant news editor at Salon, covering non-electoral politics, general news and rabble-rousing. Follow her on Twitter @natashalennard, email nlennard@salon.com.

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