The House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform, chaired by Representative Darrell Issa, featured testimony from three witnesses who have been described as "whistleblowers." Here are some highlights from the five-plus hours of testimony.
First, the players:
-- Greg Hicks, a State Department careerist, 20+ years, who was second in command to Ambassador Stevens and who took charge in the wake of the Ambassador's death. He has now in essence been demoted. Why? Read on.
-- Mark Thompson, also with State, an experienced professional assigned to the Counter-Terrorism section, in charge of the Foreign Emergency Support Team or FEST. Democrats on the committee complained that the witness was kept from them by Republicans. Actually, it would appear Mr. Thompson chose not to meet with them in advance of his appearance. Based on the line of questioning by the Democrats during the hearing, this was a smart move.
-- Eric Nordstrom, State Department RSO (Regional Security Officer) assigned to Benghazi to head up security in the months leading up to the attack. He repeatedly requested security assets be enhanced. He was reassigned approximately six weeks prior to the attack, so he was not in Benghazi on the night of the actual attack.
Next, the situation on the ground:
Incredibly, in the weeks leading up to the anniversary of 9/11, in recently war-torn Libya; with forces linked to Al Qaeda known to be operating in the Eastern part of the country; with a new and fragile friendly government; and despite a personal request from Ambassador Stevens, security assets were removed from Benghazi, on orders of Washington based State Department officials Charlene Lamb and (presumably) her boss, Under Secretary Patrick Kennedy.
According to Hicks, it was a policy goal of Secretary Clinton and the Administration to "normalize" and increase our presence in Benghazi in support of the newly elected Libyan government, which is why leaving Benghazi was not considered even after the Brits and Red Cross bugged out after previous attacks. "Normalization" may explain why Ambassador Stephens traveled to Benghazi ...
-Hicks had conversation with then Secretary of State Clinton on the night of the attack, so she had a first-hand report that this was not a spontaneous demonstration related to a stupid video, as she and other Administration officials would later claim.
-Democrat Representative Elijah Cummings said it was important to protect other officials -- meaning the officials whose position on Benghazi the witnesses were refuting. In other words, Rep. Cummings is in the "protection racket."
-Nordstrom repeated his previous testimony that the Benghazi consulate did not meet minimum security standards required by State Department rules. Only the Secretary of State can override the requirement for a facility to meet this standard. Representative John Mica pointed out that out of 200+ State Department facilities, only 14 were listed as "critical" re: security issues. Benghazi was one of the 14.
-Hicks was told by HRC's chief of staff not to meet privately with a delegation led by Representative Jason Chaffetz, who was coming as the official representative of Chairman Issa to investigate. Hicks said this was the first time in his career any such order had been given to him. The person who was to be present at any meetings between him, the RSO and another key staffer? An attorney from the State Department.
-According to Hicks, SOCAFRICA commander Lieutenant Gibson told him he was ordered not to go to Benghazi, a direct contradiction of a Defense Department spokesman who said they never gave anyone the order to stand down. Hicks reported that the military was furious over this stand-down order. This was one of two stand-down orders given during the ordeal. He reported that one of the military staff said it was the first time in his career that a diplomat had more balls than the military.
-Along the same lines, Thompson, in charge of Counter Terrorism group's Foreign Emergency Support Team or FEST, was told by the Under Secretary in charge of the decision (sorry, I didn't catch the name), that it wasn't the right time to deploy his team, even though it was trained and equipped for just such a crisis. His counterparts at the DoD and FBI were "shocked and amazed" at the denial of the request to deploy. If this wasn't the "right time," just when was? And what the heck is the point of a FEST if not to deploy in just such a circumstance?
-Incredibly, this same man, Thompson, was not questioned by the Accountability Review Board or ARB, which conducted the investigation for State into what happened and the causes of the failures. His boss, Daniel Benjamin, who was in Germany at the time, insists that the State Department Counter Terrorism Bureau's point of view was included in the report because other elements of the CT team were included. Funny, isn't it, how the most important asset for intervening, namely the Foreign Emergency Support Team, was cut out of first the decision and then the investigation?
-Hicks testified that Benghazi staffers, in evacuation mode from the consulate, had to drive through militia-controlled checkpoints to get to the fall back site, the annex. He was concerned about the militias and whether or not they were still "on-side." Remember, the administration thinks it's perfectly okay to hire private security named the February 17th Martyrs Brigade, but not, say, Blackwater! Maybe this is a case of "Foreign Work Place Violence."
- In a conversation with Acting Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Beth Jones, Hicks questioned Ambassador Susan Rice's statements (in which she blamed a video for the attacks and referred to it as a result of a spontaneous demonstration, not a coordinated terrorist attack). He said it was after this questioning that he was ultimately, in effect, demoted to his current position as a desk officer. This despite a sterling career and personal calls from both the Secretary of State and the President commending him for his actions during the Benghazi attack.
-Speaking of the ARB, no stenographers were in the room when Hicks gave his testimony and he has never been allowed to review his testimony to ensure they got it right, or to see a copy of the classified report. Surely not usual procedure.
-In one line of questioning where Nordstrom fingered Under Secretary Kennedy for failing to increase security, Democratic Representative Tammy Duckworth said words to the effect that she thought Nordstrom had shown "the way forward." But "the way forward" to what? Getting a witness friendlier to HRC? Or, failing that, a fall guy? Mr. Kennedy, call Brendan Sullivan.
-Hicks said Hillary's claim that a video caused the attack embarrassed and undermined our ally, the newly elected Libyan President, who had gone on Sunday shows saying it was a terrorist attack. He made that statement after going personally to Benghazi, at some personal and political risk, to ascertain the facts.
-Under the bus-ers thus far - General Carter Ham, Under Secretary Kennedy, Ambassador Rice.
Representative Trey Gowdy had a great summation near the end of the hearing. If you don't do anything else, watch this.
There are two possible reasons for HRC's denial that she did not know of the Ambassador's request to increase security in Libya: Either she is a terrible, AWOL executive who was too busy having her ticket punched at world leader meet and greets or...