This morning on the TODAY Show, Hillary Clinton called out the Benghazi committee for exploiting its investigation into the Benghazi tragedy and for creating a “partisan political issue out of the deaths of four Americans.”
There have already been multiple non-partisan investigations that found that Hillary Clinton did nothing wrong. While Hillary Clinton took responsibility for the tragedy, took action to make our diplomats safer abroad and was fully transparent, Republicans including the potential next speaker Kevin McCarthy have admitted the Benghazi Committee is a political effort to hurt Hillary Clinton.
KEY FACTS:
- Secretary Clinton took responsibility: In interviews, testimony and in her book, Secretary Clinton has taken responsibility repeatedly. She was determined to leave the State Department and our country safer, stronger, and more secure.
- Secretary Clinton took action: Secretary Clinton appointed a nonpartisan, independent Accountability Review Board to review what happened and began the process of implementing the 29 recommendations put forth by the ARB before leaving the State Department to strengthen embassy security.
- Secretary Clinton was fully transparent: Secretary Clinton fully and publicly answered questions before Congress. The report of the Accountability Review Board is just the second to be made public, making it one of the most transparent internal reviews in State Department history.
- It is clear that the House Select Committee’s prolonged investigation has been nothing more than a political ploy.Eight Congressional investigations have already resulted in 30 hearings dealing with the tragedy, more than 50 senior level staff briefings, more than 20 transcribed interviews, multiple independent/bipartisan reports and the disclosure of at least 70,000 pages of documents. The newest committee has already cost tax payers more than $4.6 million to date, and has gone on longer than the Warren Commission and investigations into Pearl Harbor, Hurricane Katrina, and Iran-Contra.
Seven Congressional Investigations into Benghazi:
- House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. [Benghazi Attacks: Investigative Update Interim Report on the Accountability Review Board, 9/16/13]
- House GOP. [Interim Progress Report for the Members of the House Republican Conference on the Events Surrounding the September 11, 2012 Terrorist Attacks in Benghazi, Libya, 4/23/13]
- House Committee on Armed Services. [Majority Interim Report: Benghazi Investigation Update, February 2014]
- Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs. [Flashing Red: A Special Report on the Terrorist Attack at Benghazi, 12/20/12]
- Senate Intelligence Committee. [Review of The Terrorist Attacks on U.S. Facilities in Benghazi, Libya, September 11-12, 2012, 1/15/14]
- House Committee on Foreign Affairs. [Majority Staff Report on Benghazi, 2/7/14]
- House Select Committee on Intelligence. [Investigative Report on the Terrorist Attacks on U.S. Facilities in Benghazi, Libya, September 11-12, 2012, 11/21/14]