Hillary Rodham Clinton Testifies on Benghazi Thursday Oct 22,2015

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton testifies before a House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing about the events in Benghazi, Libya, in Washington, on Jan. 22, 2013.

 

(When the House select committee investigating the 2012 attacks on American diplomaticc outposts in Benghazi was created, Democrats immediately criticized it as a partisan effort to damage the political fortunes of Clinton )

Republicans say the investigation is focused on the four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, killed in the Sept. 11, 2012 assault.

 Democrats and a few Republicans say the probe, which has spent at least $4.5 million so far, is focused on Clinton and has undermined her White House bid.

Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., the committee chairman, says he wants to ask Clinton, who was secretary of state when the assault occurred, why U.S. security at the compound was not beefed up as conditions in Libya deteriorated and other countries, including Britain, were pulling out.

Hillary Rodham Clinton's marathon Benghazi testimony wended from morning to noon to night Thursday Oct 22,2015, ending after 11 hours of back-and-forth with committee members -- and little new information.

As Hillary Clinton spent hours testifying about the attacks in Benghazi, even Republican members of Congress doubted Thursday's hearings would substantially shift public opinion. 

Two lawmakers from California on the House Benghazi committee, Adam Schiff and Linda Sanchez, were prominent at Thursday's hearing, giving Hillary Clinton a boost by asking her relatively easy questions and sympathizing with her over her scuffles with Republicans

Whenever there is controversy around the Clintons, Sidney Blumenthal often finds his way into the story
Sidney Blumenthal(66)first made headlines during President Clinton's administration, where he served as an advisor with a close relationship to Hillary Clinton. An adamant Clinton defender, he was accused during the Monica Lewinsky scandal of planting stories in the media that Lewinsky, a former White House intern, was the president's "stalker." He was also accused of spreading information to discredit independent prosecutor Ken Starr and his staff and was called to testify before the grand jury investigating the president. As the impeachment unfolded, he pushed the notion that a "vast right-wing conspiracy" was behind Bill Clinton's problems.

WHAT HAPPENED IN BENGHAZI?

A: The attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in the Mediterranean port city in Libya occurred on Sept. 11, 2012 — the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The attack came in three waves, spread over eight hours at two locations. A few attackers scaled the wall of the diplomatic post after dark and opened a gate, allowing dozens of armed men inside. They set the building on fire. Ambassador Chris Stevens and Sean Smith, a State Department communications specialist, were overcome by choking smoke in a safe room, and later died.

Hours later, a nearby CIA annex was attacked twice. CIA security contractors Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty died there while defending the annex from the rooftop. A team of six security officials summoned from Tripoli and a Libyan military unit helped evacuate the remaining U.S. personnel. They were taken to an airport and flown out of Benghazi.

The attacks have been the subject of seven previous congressional investigations.

HAS ANYONE BEEN APPREHENDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE ATTACK?

A: Ahmed Abu Khattala was captured in June 2014 by U.S. special forces and brought to the United States to face trial. Khattala, 43, is the first militant to be prosecuted for the Benghazi violence.

He initially was charged with conspiracy to provide support to terrorists and multiple other counts that make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Among other charges, he is accused of providing material support to terrorists, malicious destruction of property and attempted murder of an officer and employee of the U.S

WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE 17 MONTHS OF THE COMMITTEE'S INVESTIGATION?

Since it was created in May 2014, the committee has held three public hearings, the last in January.

Gowdy said the committee has interviewed 54 witnesses, including seven eyewitnesses to the attacks who had not been interviewed in previous investigations. The committee also has reviewed more than 50,000 pages of documents never before given to Congress, including emails from the ambassador and other top State Department personnel. The committee says it has received about 7,000 printed pages of emails involving Stevens, including at least 1,300 pages delivered on Tuesday.

Gowdy and other Republicans have complained that the State Department has resisted their efforts by slow-walking emails and other documents needed to complete the inquiry. In March, it was revealed that Clinton used a private email account for government business.

Democrats complain that they have been frozen out of some of the committee interviews.

The committee is authorized to investigate and issue a final report on policies, decisions and activities that contributed to the attacks, what hampered the ability of the U.S. to prepare for them and how the U.S. responded. Its work is expected to continue into 2016 — a presidential election year

WHAT HAS CLINTON SAID IN HER PREVIOUS TESTIMONY?

A: In January 2013, Clinton testified for more than five hours at two congressional committees, rejecting GOP suggestions that the administration tried to mislead the country about the attack. Clinton once again took responsibility for the department's missteps and failures leading up to the assault.

She said then that she was more focused on how to improve security and that it didn't matter what triggered the attack.

Clinton also has said that requests for additional security did not reach her level, and that four employees have been removed from their jobs and placed on administrative leave, but federal rules prevent the department from taking more drastic steps.

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