Yes, basically.
Now, President “Voting Present” might set up a phalanx of yes-men to keep generals with urgent requests from even finding him.
But the way the system is set up, as soon as the alarm from Benghazi goes out, the QRF in Germany (or anywhere the designated QRF is located that day) is put on alert, and even without orders from Washington, would be moved closer to the crisis to be ready faster when the POTUS gives the order to launch the rescue mission.
For Reagan or either Bush, this would have happened in real time. In the same span of minutes, the QRF in Germany (or whereever it is) is heading to C-17s or C-130s. They have contingency plans for exactly this scenario.
For Reagan or Bush, they might not even have needed to pause in Sicily, because they would have ordered them to head directly to Benghazi. This is one of their primary missions: to rescue a besieged American outpost under attack.
But if Obama pretends not to know, or not to hear, all he needs to do is NOT issue execute orders for a rescue mission with CBA.
He granted CBA for the OBL mission in Pakistan, he grants CBA when we put armed drones into Yemen etc to kill terrorists. He knows the deal.
But if he fails to grant CBA on 9-11-2012 for a Benghazi rescue mission, it can’t get off the ground, because it can’t enter Libyan air space.
The CIA assets in Tripolie (same distance to Benghazi as Sigonella) can be used on the orders of the acting ambassador or CIA staion chief, because they were already “in country” and not bound by the need to obtain CBA.
The 100+ Force Recon Marines in Sigonella should have arrived in Benghazi before the six CIA shooters from Tripoli, with F-16s and F-18s over Benghazi an hour earlier yet. But they can’t move unless POTUS affirmatively grants CBA and hands down execute orders for the MILITARY rescue mission, using forces outside of Libya.
He never granted CBA, or the White House would have shown the world copies of the orders. Then he could totally blame the military for failing to carry out his orders.
The logic prism says therefore no CBA was granted.
Great reporting.
OK. But only the President has the authority AND THE RESPONSIBILITY to order military forces into Libya to rescue the Americans under attack. I’m trying to reduce Obama’s wiggle room on this. And he is wiggling like a big old worm.
Panetta and Dempsey and Ham and Hillary and Petraeus had the authority and responsibility TO ASK that military forces be sent into Libya, but they did not have the authority TO ORDER military forces into Libya. That order could only come from Obama. So these five can use legalese and say they never turned down a request for military assistance because only Obama could give the order. And he could try to legal out of it by saying he never turned down a request for military assistance to Benghazi, he just ignored it or postponed the decision. BUT IT WAS HIS RESPONSIBILITY TO GIVE THE ORDER TO SEND MILITARY FORCES INTO LIBYA. HE CAN’T EVADE HIS RESPONSIBILITY. He asked to be President. As a matter of fact, he’s working pretty hard now to keep his job. He wants the power and prestige and benefits of being the President, but he doesn’t want the responsibilities. That is just more evidence of what a dirty little money-grubbing Democrat grifter he is.